by Rochelle Ratner
He sits beside her on the couch, hugging the remote to his hip, switching to the baseball or football game at every commercial. This drives her crazy. But her feet are in his lap and he's also massaging them. He rubs the remote over her arch, then thinks better of that. It's been a long day. Then again, the days are getting shorter. Soon they'll have to make plans for Christmas travel. She recalls the year they sat up in bed at four a.m., looking at a guidebook to Disney World for adults. Another year they missed the plane when the limo driver, two days on the job, got lost at the airport. Two years ago her computer came crashing off the belt with a thud and the plane was already boarding, and it was over an hour before, fighting for leg room, she could get it out of its case to make sure it would boot. By that time she wanted nothing to do with him or his family.
Rochelle Ratner's latest poetry books include Leads (Otoliths Press, 2007), Balancing Acts (Marsh Hawk Press, 2006), Beggars at the Wall (Ikon, 2006) and House and Home (Marsh Hawk Press, 2003). She is the author of fifteen previous poetry collections and two novels (Bobby’s Girl and The Lion’s Share) both published by Coffee House Press). More information and links to her writing on the Internet can be found on her homepage.
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