Author Information
Pardon Me
By Taylor Springs
May 30, 2013
Pardon me
For bumping into you this morning
In the hall
I was the girl
With a slight hint of coffee on her breath
From this morning’s trial and success
Of standing in a line
“Next, next, next…” the barista said
And then she guessed my order before I could speak, again
I must come here too often
I apologize if I shoved the words “I’m sorry,”
Out of my mouth
Like I forgot to inhale
Before I decided to speak to you
Because I did
You were kind of cute
Under all that disapproval
Regarding my accidental bumping
Into you
I wasn’t paying very much attention
And was overly determined
On getting to that class I didn’t want to go to
To take a test I didn’t want to take (but had to)
In order to get the hell out of here
Out of your way, out of your hair
So sorry my shoulder touched your elbow
This morning, tall dude
You were quick to anger
Fast to frown upon me
But I hope everything works out for you
As you were looking down on me
I noticed
You were tall
Older,
A senior?
A senior to me, regardless
You made me so nervous
So much anger so fast, in your eyes
That I wanted to bite off all my nails and cut my hair
Craw within my own self
So that there’d be
Less of me, for you
To hate
I am kind of scatter-brained
Do I apologize for that, too?
Pardon me for bumping into you
Where will you be one month from now?
All graduated,
Last summer before college, or on somebody’s couch?
Either way, I wish you luck
But leave some luck with me, too
Because I am quite far behind you
Ahead in the hallway, but behind in life
And I’ll be here another two years
At least
Then you’ll be twenty and I’ll be 18
Diploma?
Adulthood?
Is it scary? Should I slow down?
Two feet taller and two years ahead
You are
I am, for now,
An insignificant girl in the hallway
Who bumped into you one day in May
Wish a simple rushed and hushed apology
Barely audible, but I moved on
To bump into another someone
You don’t know a thing about me
And unless you were on my right side
You wouldn’t notice that I’ve got my ear pierced four times
Coffee breath and clumsiness is all you get to know
Now they call me really crazy
For writing a poem for a boy I’ve never met
You were so generic
Not to mention I bump into a different person every day
I wouldn’t recognize you in a room of tall boys
I didn’t have time to record your face
Because
I had to get to that class on time
And on time is four minutes early, for me
Four minutes before the bell
Early to isolate
Early to find a seat
Early so people won’t bother me
With their condescending smiles
And busy senseless chatter
About who-the-hell-cares what sport
My pointless rush, to you,
It doesn’t make much sense
For me to float from room to room
As quickly as I can
It doesn’t get me out of here much faster
But I’ll pretend that I don’t know that
And I’ll hurry as I please
Can I say I met you
With a sorry and a smile?
In the hallway of May this year?
I write this at the end of my Biology E.O.C.
(a class I missed once or twice a week)
And I know it doesn’t matter but if you care
I think I passed the test, at least
Is it because I took my time,
Or do you think
It’s because I hurried?
