tell us about yourself
says my girlfriend's female cousin
as we sit around the kitchen table
after christmas dinner.
they're all drunk on wine
fog
and dirty jokes
while the men
watch football
in the den.
i'm a bit of an introvert
takes me a while to calibrate,
i tell her
going back to reading the instructions
for the fancy coffee-bean grinder
my girlfriend's mother gave me.
come on
give us something
tell us a secret
bet you've got a-lot of secrets,
says one of the older aunts
as my girlfriend blows me a kiss
from the den
where she's taking pictures
of the kids
playing with their presents.
ok
well
i think women
are beautiful terrible creatures
i used to chew on their hearts
like laffy-taffy
most nights of the week
i would go to a bar
shot of whiskey
bud-light
i would alternate
like that
and wait
maybe a woman
would sit down next to me
maybe she wouldn't
i never chased them
but if she did
i was straight for the heart
like an indian tracker
i wanted it in my hands
for a minute
a week
a month
just long enough
to know she had
given it to me
and even though
i don't drink anymore
it's probably the reason
things won't work out
with your cousin and i.
subject to change
heart distilled
in the ocean of her eyes
locked in each others arms
after making love
it could all be gone
in an instant
a thousand
different ways
snow
rain
betrayal
sun
between clouds
through a window
onto your hand
grim reaper
plays bag-pipe
on a hill
it's good reason
to count your blessings
and love without shame
or remorse
in each moment
but it's
just as good of reason
to wrap your heart in tinfoil
hide out in a truck-stop booth
and write poems
while the world
passes you by.
Followers
About Me
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