Simplify, as in Forget
To turn off the stove
or close the refrigerator door,
such brazen attempts to win
the aging contest or blur the mirror
of clarity — you won’t say
which to blame or praise
or whether intent is implicit in
action or if I should hold my breath.
What is the freezing point of love?
When you were cold, whose
belly did you curl into, whose ear
gathered your breath and returned it
warm and with the promise of bees
producing honey? Your name floats
above my outstretched hand,
and unable to grab it, I blink and turn
away. Nothing works as it should.
I exhale. You push the door shut.
* * *
“Simplify, as in Forget” first appeared in the print journal Good Works Review in February 2018.
O at the Edges 
Sobering. We seem all headed in this direction – personally or as caregivers,
“promise of bees producing honey” is hopeful, but no sure bet.
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It is a reality in our world, and one of my greatest personal fears.
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Love/tolerance/respect in one mighty blur, our hope for such misfortune.
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We offer what we can, and hope it’s enough.
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Know this well, and likely could never express it as eloquently as you do.
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Thanks, V.J. I misplace words all too frequently, but at least I still have them to misplace!
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Well that’s one thing…
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We grab onto what we can…
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Fortunately we’re all aging together, though sometimes we forget 🙂
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Ha!
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