Eight: thesis (poem)
thesis
This is not an easy thing to say
…or will be hard for you to hear
or, he thought, we need to talk
at last he thought, let me ask you…
better, she’ll have to say okay
no one says no
no, because I wasn’t ready
no, because you ask if you can ask…
…and I see. But with an upsetting empathy
he sees. The yawn before them not the old ennui
If I go
If negotiate entente, plug start and finish times
into a meeting app and we allow the power
to each, of switching the other off
we talked, in early days, you had the place
the fenced yard and quiet street
for a garden, for a dog
at times the old woman, from her kitchen
slow steadying on an ankle, hand tight on the fraying screen
door, we had to wait, for politeness’ sake
for the other shoe to drop
at the pickets she always said
you can have it, I’ll take off the rent
and when she died her son said no
we have to sell both, this one and that
and found a buyer with a leasing scheme
more than the two of us, pooling resources
could bleed, free of our small savings
this is not an easy thing to say
theory
Comfortingly
(2020, Stephanie Foster)