Jennifer’s poem explores a premonition of a future morning, filled with warmth, new life, and healing, offering solace and hope in the present, exclusively for Different Truths.

I had been there before
as I poured my coffee
in the dim light of the stove
it felt oddly familiar
 
as I opened the fridge
to grab the milk
it clicked into place
 
another morning
half asleep
pouring my coffee
 
but it hadn’t happened yet
it was a pre-memory
of my future
but more real
than a dream
 
I had slept in
the barn last night–
the last night that
hadn’t yet occurred–
to welcome
the newest batch of kittens

wrapped in a quilt
with a fire on
to ward the December chill
and in the little kitchen
for nights like this
I’d poured a cup of coffee
and snuggled in
with the newborn kittens
to give their tired mom a break
 
they licked and sniffed
my ears and hair
their curiosity endearing
as I reached for a pen
and a notebook nearby
to catch a falling poem
 
about new life
and rebirth
and unseen possibilities
 
about gratitude
and connection
and life coming full circle
 
and as my heart awoke
with the gentle rising sun
I sipped coffee while they slept
 
and carried my new poem-memory
back to the past-present
for it was needed more there
 
now I can see
with newly risen eyes
mended heart at home in the future
 
and know that I will
truly be
okay again one day

Picture design by Anumita Roy

Jennifer Gurney

Jennifer Gurney lives in Colorado, where she teaches, paints, writes, and hikes. Her poetry has appeared internationally in a wide variety of journals, two of her poems have won international contests, and one was recently turned into a choral piece for a concert. Jennifer’s first book of poetry, My Eyes Adjusting, has recently been published.

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