a good wife



i want to be a good wife, to keep
my slippers clean

the bed sated, the
cupboards full

i want to be a good wife, the
funny kind that makes you split
your pants when you are laughing

i want to be a good wife and listen
to all the atrocities and mundanities
with equal measure i want

to be a good wife and
adorn my husband with garlands of love
and feasts of pheasant

even when it is raining
and we have no money

i want to be a good wife
and tend to the little things
while he is away

sifting through the promises of grandeur

i want to be a good wife
and slide all the nuances of pain and disappointment
underneath the rug

i want to be a good wife
clad in fashionable skirts

and well-kept

juggling a hot sheet of cookies
and a martini as

he walks in the door

finally away

no more