The 2:00 AM Shift Change

The TV is showing a hurricane in Florida,

but the volume is muted, so the palm trees

just snap in total silence above the vending machine.

My molars ache from the hum of the lights.

Across the aisle, a stack of golf magazines

from three summers ago has begun to curl,

their covers soft and damp from a hundred palms.

A nurse in patterned scrubs stops walking,

puts a hand on a stranger's shoulder,

and tells her to go find a cup of coffee.

It is the kindest way of saying

there is nothing left for you to do but wait.