One Saturday afternoon after a sparring session,
my sensei and I shared a sudden lesson
across the two front seats of my hybrid sedan—
another spontaneous spiritual dojo.
My sensei says to me,
“Sometimes the simplest of choices
lead us to the most significant moments.”
He alludes to the studious discipline of the egret,
who spends hours ornamenting the koi pond before striking.
He cites the steady persistence of the hummingbird,
whose instincts are a compass, both toward nectar and survival.
He asks if I’d like to go bird watching on Sunday,
but I retort, “Sensei, let’s focus on the moment at hand.”
He nods and alludes to Bruce Lee,
“Be like water,” he echoes,
as if Bruce himself hadn’t just whispered that lesson
from a TikTok reel migrating across my screen.
After his tender revelations, his solemn lessons,
I can’t help but point out that
we’re still in line at the Chick-fil-A,
and no one has shown greater patience
than the strained, grinning teenager
with her grease-streaked iPad,
while forty-four four-doors
behind us honk their horns
in perfect harmony with the universe.

————

Torrey Francis Malek is an American poet from Greenville, Delaware. In 2023, he was a featured poet on the Shortlist for the Letter Review Prize for Poetry. His work has appeared in the Broadkill Review, Big Wing Review, and Plants & Poetry Journal. His debut chapbook, Glory Hill, will be published in 2025.