The Charm
Now you have gone
friends are coming to the house again,
friends I neglected for so long.
I am praying
that they will not notice
my pale preoccupation,
the slight movement of my lips
as I pass from table to door.
They fill the room
with the light of their voices,
it is good
to sit as before
and fill the glasses to overflowing
and drain them to the last drop.
For a time I am warm.
Lick thick velvet, like a curtain,
simple words
hold back the dark.
