The Best Tavern in America

From out of the weather

into the quiet

of the St. James Tavern-

as through a decompression chamber-

we escape the noise of the city.

The only sounds are the clink of ice,

clunk clunk clunk of the billiard tables,

and murmur of voices over

the pull of the tap and roll of the surge.

A television-free zone where hardwood floors are heeled to a shine,

voices and laughter seem soft and sacred as in the nave of a church.

Where connections are forged 

under dim lights and electric vibes.

A haven where monsters need not apply.

In restaurant speak the 86 Board means What We Are Out Of.  At the St. James Tavern in Columbus Ohio it means what we are sick of. 

A happy Sunday to all!  As we used to say before the pandemic, it's Sunday Funday. Can we bring it back?  Or as Poets & Storytellers United ask, start over again?