The Widows' Handbook: Poetic Reflections on Grief and Survival

The Widow Turns Down a Date

a different life 295 The Widow Turns Down a Date Gail Gilliland My neighbor wants to fix me up With his plumber friend, a Catholic Who fathered five children Then lost his wife. I wasn’t a good mother the first time around, Am not Catholic, and even though The plumber possesses a license, Somewhere I was given a doctorate. My neighbor sees a woman growing old alone While I see a woman who no longer gives a damn, Whose hair now tumbles gray and long Heavy as iron on her shoulder bones And who wears no make-up And, if she puts on clothes Puts back on in the morning What she took off last night. I don’t need a plumber, so Why does his plumber friend Need a wife? ...