ONE WEDDING NIGHT
Elisavietta Ritchie
He blinks to note the old
woman parked in his bed, all
wrinkles and bellies, breasts
not as full as they seemed.
Which psychological drive, she
wonders, pushed her to sleep
with this grandfather figure,
and what if, in the midst
of things, his heart fails?
What would the rescue squad --
those husky bucks -- speculate?
Not the usual bimbo here
who makes an old man's pump
seize up when he tries --
He turns down, she turns
off, the unkind light.
In silence they strive
to ignore imperfections,
remember the rules, or
at least work around them,
holding each other
lightly as luna moths.
