Deck of cards
just in case
anyone
wants to play
some crazy eight

“welcome home”
my mother announces
dishes to wash!?
“SHIT”
can I leave now . . .

we sit at desks
stained with dead sea scrolls
x, o, x
unbeknownst to him
I play to win

the one that got away
divorced twice
six kids
unemployed
I'm glad she got away

Chicken and dumplings
simmering, sweet
beautiful crockpot
ah, Nana,
it’s been too long

uniform pressed
medals shined
walking down Main Street
solo parade
for the returning veteran

Family songbird
wants to fly
somewhere
anywhere
but not home

Curled
with a book
fireplace crackling
alone
at last

thinking about you
“oh nah, nah, nah”
getting closer
to your love
“bed”

the slight whooshing of the eraser
cleaning the chalkboard
ever so softly
filled the room
for a lifetime

a girl
Needs! . . . a man
like parmesan complements spaghetti
it tastes good
yet, you have to be in the right mood

body wriggles and sheds a layer
he drapes it over a chair
dingy off-white t-shirt
blue jeans, black belt
Shawshank

with my children
at my father's house
digging in the backyard
trying to remember
when I buried that time capsule

no signal
swerving trucks
like white on rice
impossible to separate
not really how I imagined my death

white thunderbird jumpsuit
red Hawaiian lei
The King immortalized
in all his glory
on the black velvet canvas