JOHN PIERCE // After a While, I Call My Friend

After a While, I Call My Friend

The question
“How are you?”
takes, it seems,
its long way down the line,
as if itself unsure, startled
to mean something for once.
Because, truth is,
I don’t know how she is,
not by the pace of her walk
nor by the angle 
of her smile.

She is fine and so am I, 
we assure each another, 
steadying ourselves 
for the oncoming rush,
the stream of miseries I’ve called,
and she’s answered, to share.

Arthritis.
Her husband’s back.
My new job
and lack of girlfriend.
Her daughter away to college,
doing ok.
Our moms causing trouble,
and everyone 
she thinks I’d remember
still alive.

We will pray for each other.
We hang up,
and are fine.

Late, I think to pray,
a thanks, and a praise, 
and without words, the lament.
My next call
will be further away,
and barring tragedy,
we will have less to say.

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John Pierce is a high school teacher from Fort Worth, Texas (USA). His work has appeared in Valley Voices, The Quarterlife Quarterly, Ometeca, and Feathertale.