Around the Table

around the table

shuffling feet and cards

hacking coughs and muttering

over camels and pall malls

the unfiltered kind

they were the remains

of the men of men

talking about the good old days

that never were

day after day, always the same

my father sat among them

telling his joke

he only told one joke

it would run

as far as he could take it

and then some...

at times he'd say just one word

everyone would laugh

knowing what comes after

one by one their hands folded

and dad's eyes kept fading

turning lighter shades of grey

the sparks of friendships

mostly ashen, now...

around the table

children ran in and out

among the legs of table, aunts

and uncles, cousins

daughters and son

buffet dishes warming

on the side, under lids

filling empty spaces

conversation failed to start

mother asked me if I thought

he really loved her

I replied with sinking heart

yes, of course he did

 

 

Gunpowder Review , 2002

Fiera Lingue (reprint), 2003