At Her Desk

She has gone, her desk
cleansed of scent

No more idents.
Nothing to load the stapler-

Paper,
Unhappily clean

covering the formica
spurning scribbles and notes;

take up a pen
and bruise its white.

Day Before
the desk buzzed with work-

Post-Its swarmed over the keyboard
that has been taken,

along with monitor and mouse
along with ink and pen

Now all clear at the terminal
Just dust left

and the empty space
on the chair

is distractingly bare
And space, space so loaded

Without her
Though she is just down the hall.

David Woods