Human conversation
does not travel
from A to B to C
in a neat and orderly fashion.

It starts at A
heading in the direction of B
but takes a detour to A-prime
and then to 1
from which it may turn to 1(a)
or possibly to 2.

After touching on 2,
it leaps to Red
and then Green.

Perhaps at this juncture,
it bounds back on track for B,
but when it gets there,
instead of heading in the direction of C,
it may pause and catch its breath.

It may, in fact,
stop there
and never get to C.

Until 2 a.m.
when the phone will ring
and a voice will say, “C!”

–– C. Eric Funston
29 January 2020