The Repair Shop on Ninth Street

By David Anson Lee

The sign flickers, half-lit,

as if undecided.

Inside, a man replaces springs

no one takes time to save.

He lifts each object gently,

as though it remembers being useful.

A radio hums between stations,

time slipping sideways.

I watch his hands choose patience

over speed, accuracy over praise.

When I leave, nothing is fixed:

except the way I measure time.

---

David Anson Lee is a physician, philosopher, and poet based in Texas. Drawing on backgrounds in medicine and philosophy, as well as Native American heritage, his work explores attention, time, restraint, and the quiet ethics of being human. His poetry has appeared in The Rush, Right Hand Pointing, Unbroken Journal, The Scarred Tree, and Braided Way.