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Poetry
Elevator
“Elevator” - 12/29/2025
 
Being stuck in a lift with my Dad with a charged phone wasn’t so bad
I hit the emergency button a couple times and
When it was clear no one was coming he said
“Call the fire department honey” so I did and immediately someone
Who sounded very solid said they were on their way
 
In some ways I think it was an apt moment
To test the level of stress we collectively feel
My Dad and me and also a reminder of why we get along so well
 
I’ve mentioned I was logical; he told me he’d been trapped
In an elevator years ago when his office was in
The Empire State Building he was already planning how
“They’ll probably have us crawl up through the shaft on a ladder my guess
Is it’ll be a couple hours so we’ll miss the movie
But it’s good there are only a few floors and that thing you use online
Instagram you could post we’re stuck in here if needed, right?”
 
These are the genes - half of them - I’ve thankfully inherited
He never panicked and all in all it was actually kind of fun
“Wow those firemen were so handsome! Why are they
Always that way? I wonder if they have a calendar well
Good to know you’re in such a safe town sweetheart!”
And off we went, to enjoy some quick lunch
A shared bowl of quinoa and veggies before
Catching the 1pm showing of a heartwarming film
About unconditional love and music and never giving up
—-
I imagine if we’d gotten stuck in a skyscraper
In NYC things would’ve gone much differently
I can empathize with the nightmarish claustrophobia
You’ve described when you lived in a high rise and yours malfunctioned
I love small spaces I can think better in them
(hotels, control rooms, covers over my eyes)
Yet I always want a lot of space to spread out
What we want and what we need are often at odds
In this awareness I find endless opportunity to learn
What I’m learning about you is you’re real as —-
You ask a lot of great questions you’re curious by nature
I’ve got a lot of patience I’ve been told it’s one
Of my best virtues but mostly I’m just an artsy grrl who
Doesn’t like to choose or be told what I have to do
Freedom is my favorite flower freedom and her sister laughter
Reasons to live to find joy life is hard let’s empower
Each other’s dreams somehow that’s my takeaway
How can I help without taking too much time away from
The realization time is illusory if what’s meant to be shared
Is going to be given and received eventually anyway
Just know in some small way I’m happy to be in the know
To see what’s bountiful in your incandescence
Glowing in the direction you’re determined
I’m persistent yes but to be able to just relax
Understand and accept hold a candle in a dark corridor
For something more than just “success” to be able
To be seen as something more than just a backstory’s essence
A human being with all Fate’s flaws open to newness in spite of damage
This is to me the definition of living so no
I’m afraid I can’t quite categorize or label my aspiration
To be someone for whom someone else I admire stirs a sensation
A Broadway soul-show of surprise scintillation
Even if it just makes you smile to know I am
In the know and whatever the case whatsoever ensues
I am aware of your rarity and if you ever get trapped in an elevator
Of any kind (as long as you’re kind) “I’ve got you” just señálame