IMPROVISATION #103
MEETING NINA SIMONE
(1933-2003)

Walking into your studio
vaguely laughing
as I jog in San Francisco
yet cursing for nothing
into the smog
with no regretting tears
in my coffee cup
finishing off a Danish
cheese croissant
escaping from home
to these open doors
on this Golden Gate afternoon
admitting me
as if in a metamorphosis
to a time of Camelot
imagining Nina Simone
singing to me alone
the taut musical lyrics
to Billie Holiday's
"I cover the waterfront"
or "Moon light in Vermont"
yet I'm relaxed
with my tenor sax
for my original score
making a minor movie
with my own dialogue
in a timpani of verse
from my adolescent repertoire
before your drum roll mirror
quickly stopping
with my football
to punt before your presence
as you rehearse
and I receive my call.