Themes
Impartial Judge
Impartial Judge unless there are treats involved
Hot Dish
It’s not so bad if you don’t think of it as pizza, she said.
Just think of it as another one of Mom’s scary hot dishes.
Hot Dogs
My father used to carry a briefcase when he went to work every day before we left for school.
Now, he stays at home & cooks us hot dogs for breakfast.
Hot Market
hiding his light under a bushel because he’s been priced out of anything bigger by this market
Hors d’oeuvres
I think my best self lives in my stomach, she said, & only comes out around the hors d’oeuvres at parties.
I think you can tell a lot about people from the hors d’oeuvres.
I nodded & hid my Vienna sausage in a big plant in the hall & avoided her for the rest of the evening.
Hospitality Smile
not sure whether to smile too much because someone might put them on the hospitality committee
Higher Math
We looked at the numbers on the blackboard
& after awhile I finally asked if they made sense to him
& he said no, I think they’re just there to keep the riffraff out.
Hindsight (father)
I didn’t listen to him because he was my father
& wouldn’t know anything until I was much older.
Hindsight (mother)
I didn’t listen to her because she was my mother
& wouldn’t know anything until I was much older.
His Laughter
The first time his laughter
unfurled its wings in the wind,
we knew that the world
would never be the same.
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.
Hole in his Heart
He has a hole where his heart used to be
because it fell out when he was running from scary things one night in a dream
& it hurts all the time now & he doesn’t know how to fix it
& sometimes I think he doesn’t even remember that it’s gone.
Home Improvement Therapy
Don’t let them fool you, she said.
It’s impossible to remodel without deep & painful personal growth
& they don’t let you put therapy under home improvement
Hope Chest
I threw out my hope chest a while back
because it was too big to carry around with me all the time,
but I still kept all the blankets & clothes.
I just dress in more layers now
& I’m hoping to move to a cooler climate soon.
Hoping to Fall
Leaning out as far as she can,
hoping she’ll fall soon,
so she can stop worrying about
whether it will happen or not.
Hopping
I had a dream & I heard music & there were children standing around, but no one was dancing.
I asked a little girl, why not? & she said they didn’t know how, or maybe they used to but they forgot
& so I started to hop up & down & the children asked me, Is that dancing? & I laughed & said, no, that’s hopping, but at least it’s a start & soon everyone was hopping & laughing & it didn’t matter any more
that no one was dancing.
High Heels
convinced the thing that separates us from the animals is high heels
High Places
He carried a ladder almost everywhere he went
& after awhile people left all the high places to him.
High Standards
I’ve got pretty high standards for someone who doesn’t have any use for them yet.
High Tolerance
What are you good at? I said
& she said, Mainly life.
I work best with stuff
that has a high tolerance
for mistakes.