FOR FORTY FOUR OF THOSE YEARS
HE CALLED HER BEAUTIFUL EVERY DAY
MEANT IT
DIDNT KNOW IF YEARS OF REPEATING THE WORDS
MADE HER IMMUNE TO THEM
DIDNT CARE
HE HAD TO SAY THEM
WHEN SHE NEEDED
SHE WOULD HEAR THEM
LIFE WAS SIMPLE AND QUIET
ON OCCASION
A LITTER OF GRANDCHILDREN WOULD APPEAR
CLOCK HANDS WOULD SPIN
ALL THE NOISE TOYS AND JOYS
THEN THEY WOULD LEAVE
SILENCE
MOSTLY
THEIR LIFE WAS ROUTINES
THEY TOOK THEIR MEDS
TOOK THEIR WALKS
DID THEIR READING
WATCHED THEIR SHOWS
WATCHED THEIR MONEY
WATCHED THEIR WEIGHT
THEY SAT IN THE CAFE
IT WAS EARLY AND QUIET
THE WORLD WAS GOING INSANE OUTSIDE
TRYING TO GET TO WHERE IT HAD TO GO
BUT THINGS WERE STILL AND PEACEFUL FOR THEM
THEY HAD NO PRESSING ENGAGEMENTS
BREAKFAST WAS NIBBLED
MUCH WAS READ
MAGAZINES NOVELS NEWSPAPERS
CATALOGUES AND MAIL
AT TIMES
ONE WOULD LOOK UP
CATCH THE OTHER STARING
EACH WAS THE OTHERS
VESSEL OF MEMORY
SO MANY FACES EACH WORE FOR THE OTHER
YOUNG FACE
HAPPY
SAD
ANGRY FACE
PASSION FACE
MID AGE FACE
PARENT FACE
AGING FACE
SICK FACE
FIFTY FACE
OLD FACE
THE CREATURE BEFORE THEM
CHANGED SHAPE COLOR TEMPERAMENT
WITH EACH MEMORY RECALLED
UNTIL THE MEMORIES RAN OUT
AND ALL THAT REMAINED WAS
THE STILL AND QUIET
FINAL FACE
SO MUCH HAD PASSED SO QUICKLY
LIKE FENCEPOSTS FLASH BY
AS ONE SPEEDS DOWN A HIGHWAY
SO MUCH HAD OCCURRED
FROM MOMENT TO STUFFED MOMENT
THE OCCURRENCES RINGING LIKE BELLS IN THE EARS
OCCUPYING ALL SPACE AND TIME
TRAPPED IN THE ORBIT OF FATE
NOW
ENVELOPED IN THE SILENCE OF THE CAFE
THE FRAGRANCE OF COFFEE AND BREAD
COOL MORNING LIGHT
THERE WAS ONLY THEM
HE TOUCHED HER HAND
THEY SHARED A SMILE
SHE KNEW EVERYTHING
SHE WENT BACK TO HER READING
HE TRIED
COULDNT
STARED A BIT LONGER AT HER
THE ONE THE LAST
CALLED HER BEAUTIFUL
RETURNED TO HIS PAPER
FOR ANNIE AND PETER
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