I'm hypnotized by the light reflected off the pots and pans in the drying rack
we're only two weeks back
You said you only got one good picture of the two of us with our hats off laughing on some well-worn trail
You've already fixed the plumbing, you cleaned my maps off the attic stairs
put marigolds around the porch outside
now that flower bed will be a safety net for white paint peeling back

And I'd never have believed there's a town in France with my name
I'll probably move back to Jersey when my grandma's china is sold
I hold it close on the subway so the teacups do not roll
someone asks me for history but old and beautiful is all I know

I'm hypnotized by the light reflected off the gilded edge of a saucer rim
and I can't begin
You say you only got one good picture of the hillside where we walked at dusk
its name means sweetest hour
But I feel hours passing slowly, I found the post cards that we never sent
flip through the pages of our language guide
there's a corner turned over "bonjour - hello, au revoir - goodbye"

and I'd never have believed that this last embrace was harder still
each knows the other's hurting, we've had practice saying so
and I don't mind admitting that I have regretted laying low
'cause worn out sheets full of china and this sorry face are all I've got to show

Don't say I have always approved of the way things pass by me
and don't say I have just gotten used to the blur of life on the roadside
and don't say I am no longer aware of the ways you try to help me
I am packing dishes in this box, instead of staring hand me that last plate

I'm hypnotized by the light reflected off the pots and pans in the drying rack
we're only two weeks back

© 2000 Rosanne Raneri