Uniballs

My favorite pen is a Uniball. 

To be more specific

the “Vision/Elite” model 

etched in small white letters 

against the dark ink cavity.

Her plastic grayscale exoskeleton is clean, 

aerodynamic, smooth in between my fingers. 

Three small dimples on her metal clip are 

where I rest my thumb stroking it 

like a Buddha’s belly.

Her ink is smooth and dependable, 

releasing only when I press enough to ask.

No globules or staccato dashes and dots 

as I form letters on the page writing 

this poem and grocery lists.

Shiny silver tools arrive in 5-packs 

but then travel alone 

in a purse, car, briefcase, backpack. 

I imagine strapping one each to my fingers, 

Edward Scissorhands, the poet.

Heather M. Coughiln (2024)