Friday 25 December 2020

The road, Raymond Carver (1985)

What a rough night! It's either no dreams at all,
or else a dream that may or may not be
a dream portending loss. Last night I was dropped off
without a word on a country road.
A house back in the hills showed a light
no bigger than a star.
But I was afraid to go there, and kept walking.

Then to wake up to rain striking the glass.
Flowers in a vase near the window.
The smell of coffee, and you touching your hair
with a gesture like someone who has been gone for years.
But there's a piece of bread under the table
near your feet. And a line of ants
moving back and forth from a crack in the floor.
You've stopped smiling.

Do me a favor this morning. Draw the curtain and come
   back to bed.
Forget the coffee. We'll pretend
we're in a foreign country, and in love.  

[from Where water comes together with other water (1985)]




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