Certain Scoundrel
At the cocktail party
in celebration of
our thirtieth
anniversary,
amid friends and
relatives;
someone asks my wife,
who has never been
an overtly romantic
sentimentalist,
what the secret
is to our longevity.
She holds her
pregnant pause
a little longer than
necessary,
looks at me and says,
“Better the devil you
know
than the devil you
don’t know.”
And with that
gives me a wink
and a kiss on the
cheek.
Acquired Tastes
To know the bouquet
of wine,
You must first
Let it breathe
And then allow it
To escape the glass
With its unique
perfume.
To know the flavor
Of wine
There must be a first
Time taste.
Then with that
experience
Behind you,
The complexities
Of each varietal
Can be stored
In the memory.
And so it is
With you.
Gathering Essentials
Wednesday
is errand day.
I
find my keys in the rose petal bowl,
my
wallets is in the carved wooden tray
and
my
blue hat on the door hook.
I
cannot find my phone.
I
search, curse and research.
Finally
I find it,
charging
in
the powder room.
(Who
charges a phone
in
the powder room?)
There
are two text messages
I
sent myself with reminders to buy
strawberries
and Dawn dish soap.
I
would have forgotten them.
As
I am backing the car
out
of the garage,
I
suddenly turn off the car
and
hurry back into the house.
I’ve
forgotten
your
heart
and
I never go anywhere
without
it.
R. Gerry Fabian
