Events
Hobby
I’m just going to hide here in this paper bag until death comes, she said.
It could be a long time, I said. There was a pause & then her head popped out.
You think I should have a hobby while I wait? she said.
His Laughter
The first time his laughter
unfurled its wings in the wind,
we knew that the world
would never be the same.
Hidden Ocean
She held her grief behind her eyes like an ocean & when she leaned forward into the day it spilled onto the floor & she wiped at it quickly with her foot & pretended no one had seen.
Her Laughter
The first time her laughter unfurled its wings in the wind, we knew that the world would never be the same.
Hidden Twin
He was always a twin but he kept the other one hidden under his Stetson to protect her from the sun & the wind & the stares of startled people.
Heaven II
She said you know what heaven is like? & I said I wasn’t sure & she laughed & said grown-ups didn’t know much at all about important stuff & I said I had to agree with her even though I was one of them myself.
Hard to Impress
hard to impress because she’s already seen the sun rise today & it doesn’t get much better than that
Good Stuff
I’ve known for a long time that the good stuff will kill you, he said. but everything else just puts me to sleep
Great Game
What are the rules? I said & she said, Do exactly what I want whenever I want, make no demands of me whatsoever & love me forever, no questions asked & I said, how do you win? & she said, you don’t understand. I’m the only one who wins & then she laughed & clapped her hands. Isn’t it a great game? she said.
Generations
It came on her without thinking that she was the exact age as her mother was & no matter what, it would have been hard to leave & suddenly all the generations gathered around her in that small kitchen & held her close & they would have blocked the light if they had not come filled with their memories of love.
Fortune Teller
Every summer we had a circus & I always got to be the fortune teller. All the girls wanted to know if they’d have babies & all the boys wanted to find out about the Cubs. We had one neighbor who’d been in the hospital who asked me if I could tell her when she was going to die & I didn’t know what to say so I told her not before her time & then she grabbed my arm & said I was a good boy but that’s not what the doctors said & there I was looking in the crystal ball wishing I had more Gypsy and less Norwegian.
Forgotten Promises
she sang like snowflakes on my tongue, bright & sharp with the forgotten promises of spring
Flying Woman
for a long time, she flew only when she thought no one else was watching
Forever
How old do you have to be to die? he said & I said I didn’t think anybody was ever old enough & that made sense to him since he was still new to the world & remembered how forever had been.
Flower Child
I’m not that afraid of death, she said. I was in the 60’s, so I’ve already been through a lot of stuff I don’t understand.
Fine Start
I would not say I love you so much if you could teach me a better way, I said & she said that’d do fine for now.
Falling Into Place
deciding everything is falling into place perfectly as long as you don’t get too picky about what you mean by place. Or perfectly.
Easy Going
I get along better with my relatives, he said, now that most of them are dead. (Big rocks so they won’t be able to get out early)
Empty Spaces
After his father died he carried his life more gently & left an empty space for the birds & other creatures.
Deepest Desires
Wish for your deepest desires, she said & when I asked if they’d come true, she said they always do, so you might as well get them out in the open while you’re still young enough to correct any serious mistakes.