We do not have friendship,
or handshake,
or hug,
or your banal Tupperware parties.
You do not pout your lips in
sympathy when thoughts
of
my china doll bite your cheeks.
We do not plan swing-slide
adventures
for little skinny
blonde boys
and girls.
I do not smile and nod
as silly intoxication drags
misery out of your voice anymore.
But, you are my friend, soberly watching
for Raccoon feces, while your
husband throws the TV at you.
Once, I watched with clean eyes, while his dirty
ones stabbed you
with a sharp
pint.
Your voice never drags that up when
you are sober,
you only speak about the Raccoon’s.
maggiemaeijustsaythis 
My goodness! You’ve been saving up, haven’t you? Almost more than I can absorb in one day…. but, thanks for just being who you are, because you are one amazing poetess….
You make my mind wonder. How wonderful is that!
I’m just a guy with a limerick reply…
A woman who acts like a loon,
Looks for feces from a raccoon.
She stays up all night,
With a dim kitchen light,
Sometimes she sleeps in until noon.
Compliments of Humorous Interludes
just so good!
I’m not sure who is drunk in all this but I likey! Oh, and I have been drinking FWIW.
Sad, all too common I am afraid.
Yes sadly I have to agree with hallsofthemind , all too common. Thank for writing you are a POETESS!
You say so much with so few words, amazing.
Raccoon’s are willy creatures. Smart as a whip.
I have had them knock at my door wanting a tasty bite of cat food which they had stolen before because of my neglect of closing the sliding glass door.
Crunch, crunch, crunch, the first time I heard it. What the heck is that? Two Raccocons on
my ca’ts feeding table feasting on Friskies Seafood Platte, Ocean Fish.
A padlock was the only thing that kept the contents of my trash bin’s content safe within.
They attacked the Humming Bird feeders too but don’t recall an offering of poop.
If you friend is treated so badly by an uncaring spouse, living out with the Raccoons could be a good place for him and watching for his feces a better past time than what currently is engaged in.
Sad…great way to convey a story with few words.
The things on the surface are more palatable than what lies beneath…sometimes. She sounds like she really needs a friend. This poem gave me chills.
appearances are deceptive…
I imagined one of those 27 inch tube TVs sailing through the air. Good stuff. I even have a little buzz, and I haven’t had anything to drink.
A good reminder to all of us that there are two sides of every coin.
Maggie,
Strong poem good sense of pacing through use of breath. Excellent word choice creates uncomfortable images Fav line
“Once, I watched with clean eyes, while his dirty
ones stabbed you
with a sharp
pint.”
Except…is this a play off the alcohol reference using “…pint.” at the end or did you mean “…point.”?
Jes wonderin’
Overall Maggie another great poem…In general you handle extremely difficult subjects without resorting to tired or hackneyed cliches or techniques….very impressive on a regular basis
Yes, it is a play off the alcohol reference 🙂 Thank you for your comment and for reading! 🙂
You’re my favorite. Keep going.
Bahut Sundar!
(Hindi phrase which means Very beautiful)
Loved these lines! Wonderful!