Behind your curtain
was a paperback copy of MACBETH
resting on a wooden stool
and a black cat named Monet
who, after minutes of contemplation,
jumped on top of the stool
how beautiful, I thought
nothing like this in my hometown
>
You used to bless me with teenage smiles
then the smiles stopped justlikethat
and everything I did got on your nerves
so I closed my curtain
and never again stepped out for encores
>
Over two decades later,
I visited a restored home
in West Los Angeles
the owner had a living room curtain
pulled open to reveal a picture window
displaying a view of a flower garden,
a swimming pool,
and a charming guest house
>
It’s the kind of sight
you would have loved
in the year
when we were both fifteen