Fourteen degrees,
our backyard looks the same
as it did the last time I left for this long.

I flip ahead six pages,
decide not to finish Mona Simpson's story
that Jamie recommended I read,
until the story really starts and
I reach the end without wanting to.
Like so many other things.

I am afraid of you, even
as I decide to name our children whatever name
it is you prefer,
though my heart is set on Ellis.

Though I spill my coffee, my sorted truths
all over 1369,
I am hopeful.

12/20/2008

Posted on 12/20/2008
Copyright © 2025 Melanie J Yarbrough