Mr. Smith
he used to
stand
in his driveway
staring
not sure at what …
but he’d stand
that way
for a while
each dawning day
there in his undershirt
and uniform pants
maybe he was admiring
the pristine green
that was his lawn
courtesy of his wife’s
diligent demeanor
or maybe he was
following the wing
of a bird
or a butterfly
or a bee
he could have been
watching the wind
play with potted petals
or following the line
of his shadow
end to end
who knows
but him
later in life
he’d be joined
by a little, fluffy, yapping dog
white as his hair
that he’d treat like a child,
the child he never had
but the dog
did what dogs do
and got old
and sick
and too tired to yap
or stand in the driveway
guess he did, too
last week
he made his wife
a widow
after 59 years
but something
tells me
he’s staring
at her
each dawning day
TL