Assignment 15: Sign up for an online poetry class

 This is a revised version of my first assignment:

Tea

My mind swims with thoughts of disappearing dreams,
fading sleep films that slip away as I lift my head from the pillow.
Last night's obsessions, worries, and hopes grow dim
as I stumble into the kitchen,
bleary eyes blinking away the glare of the streetlamp
still streaming through the front window
even as the dawn begins to break.
I open the cupboard and search for my favorite mug,
find it dirty in the dishwasher,
yesterday's lipstains and fingerprints still clinging to the glass.
A glob of soap, a swish of water and I wash them clean,
preparing the cup for our new day.
Cold water from the Brita heats quickly in the microwave.
The sweet smelling bag filled with crushed chamomile,
apple bits, and crumbles of cinnamon is put to steep.
Clear water slowly clouds, steam hits my nose, 
I burn my tongue and begin to wake.

Harlem Serenade

On a sticky afternoon
he stopped underneath her window, open wide to catch
the faintest of summer breezes.
"Ay, yo!"
He waited for her to appear, spitting on the sidewalk,
moving over to let an old lady and her cart go by.
Her pink curlers emerged first,
followed by a cigarette, from which she took a long drag
and then flicked onto the brim of his fitted cap. 
He brushed off the ashes and squinted up.
"Why you ain't call me last night, shorty?"
A second figure comes to the window, bronze skin
glistening underneath a dingy wifebeater,
arms rippling as they pull his love away.
The cigarette, disgarded, lands beside immaculate sneakers,
freshly wiped clean that morning.
Have received his answer,  Romeo turns and walks away.