BREAKING

Breaking news
in an avalanche of voices
heard at daybreak
at breakfast hour
on this dog day
in my Beat nook
having a mocha
while listening to David Bowie's
song, 'Under Pressure"
getting a  long distance call
from Miami, Florida
from a former student,Betty
telling me of her non-stop
life as a school lifeguard
remembering how she
rescued beautiful turtles
with me at the sandbar
that once made their way
up the Coast to Cape Cod
fleeing the winter whirlpools
telling me she was on local T.V.
reading at a poet slam
how I inspired Betty
not to be shy in class,
now she has sent me a tape
at her first reading
in English and Spanish
remembering when I played sax
at a local gig and she
vanished by a blueberry patch
too bashful to speak.