Welcome to the February Poem of the Month. I’ve recently revamped the Poem of the Month, cleaned up the email list, added some people that I’d neglected and am now using an email application that will help me manage the list as it continues to grow. I’ve also added an automated “opt-out” at the bottom of this email in case the monthly poems regularly leave you all anxious and pensive. 🙂
I also thought I’d share with you how I pick my monthly selection. With only a few exceptions, the poems I select must be 1) short enough to read in a minute or two; 2) something that even “non-poetry” people can understand, and 3) I personally like. With that drivel out of the way, on to the Poem of the Month. As I recall how nervous I was in Kindergarten giving Denise Perry a valentine and hoping it was decorated well enough to win her affection, I give you this poem by Hal Sirowitz.
Warmest Regards, and Happy Valentines Day!
Stewart
Hal Sirowitz
(1949 – )
Lending Out Books
You’re always giving, my therapist said.
You have to learn how to take. Whenever
you meet a woman, the first thing you do
is lend her your books. You think she’ll
have to see you again in order to return them.
But what happens is, she doesn’t have the time
to read them, & she’s afraid if she sees you again
you’ll expect her to talk about them, & will
want to lend her even more. So she
cancels the date. You end up losing
a lot of books. You should borrow hers.
