Our Last April Together
The marquee reads: “Fried Green Tomatoes”.
Sea-scented mist looms around my husband and me
as we await the opening of the ticket window.
I nestle into his large black leather jacket
inhale the aroma of him, his aftershave lotion,
the air dampened with the weight of the moment.
Around us, on this gray Sunday afternoon,
teenage girls giggle their loosening shyness,
Boys play tag, not unaware of coy laughter.
Others in line, tighten their woolen scarves
chat comfortably with each other
as though words would bring warmth .
Calmness becomes me. Quiet, my blanket
as I gather memories for certain loneliness.
Scattering squirrels seek stored nourishment.
We hear the ticket window open.
Arm in arm, we enter the dark theater,
to escape, for a while, into Technicolor.
Illia Thompson, graduate of Antioch College, teaches Memoir Writing classes and conducts Writing and Collage Workshops. Her books include Gracious Seasons, a collection of vignettes during her husband’s last year, Along the Memoir Way, poems to be used as springboards for journaling, and several poetry collections. Her poems also appear in local publications. Published in Monterey Poetry Review.
The marquee reads: “Fried Green Tomatoes”.
Sea-scented mist looms around my husband and me
as we await the opening of the ticket window.
I nestle into his large black leather jacket
inhale the aroma of him, his aftershave lotion,
the air dampened with the weight of the moment.
Around us, on this gray Sunday afternoon,
teenage girls giggle their loosening shyness,
Boys play tag, not unaware of coy laughter.
Others in line, tighten their woolen scarves
chat comfortably with each other
as though words would bring warmth .
Calmness becomes me. Quiet, my blanket
as I gather memories for certain loneliness.
Scattering squirrels seek stored nourishment.
We hear the ticket window open.
Arm in arm, we enter the dark theater,
to escape, for a while, into Technicolor.
Illia Thompson, graduate of Antioch College, teaches Memoir Writing classes and conducts Writing and Collage Workshops. Her books include Gracious Seasons, a collection of vignettes during her husband’s last year, Along the Memoir Way, poems to be used as springboards for journaling, and several poetry collections. Her poems also appear in local publications. Published in Monterey Poetry Review.