NO HAPPY ENDINGS.
Posted: October 31st, 2011, 3:20 am
There are no happy endings,
Auntie said. Her words tasted
like bitter lemons in the mouth,
causing imaginary ulcers that
stung when ever words came out.
It was the way she said it, as if
she’d discovered some mystery
of the universe and hammered it
like brass. People meet, they have
kids and then after a while they die
and that’s it, she’d say, giving you a
look, clearing breakfast things away.
To your five year old ears, this seemed
like harsh; no mention of an afterlife
or heaven or all things will all right in
the end God will see to that; her words
heavy with sadness, leaving an odd taste
in the mouth like a fizzy drink gone flat.
Auntie said. Her words tasted
like bitter lemons in the mouth,
causing imaginary ulcers that
stung when ever words came out.
It was the way she said it, as if
she’d discovered some mystery
of the universe and hammered it
like brass. People meet, they have
kids and then after a while they die
and that’s it, she’d say, giving you a
look, clearing breakfast things away.
To your five year old ears, this seemed
like harsh; no mention of an afterlife
or heaven or all things will all right in
the end God will see to that; her words
heavy with sadness, leaving an odd taste
in the mouth like a fizzy drink gone flat.