899 U
I watch the sun rise
with this woman
I met at a diner
she has gaudy jewelry
and long nails
hair that smells like
chemicals
mascara
so damn thick
she tells me
she’s
a
cosmetology student
is trying to get
through school or
just the day
I offer to help
pay for her classes
but I don’t have a cent
and she knows it
so she smiles
and flicks a cigarette
onto the pavement
kisses me on the cheek
for once
I feel okay
for once
a woman smells like herself
and not somebody I’m
trying to force her to be
for once
I feel okay
for once
I cry
not from the booze
or the pills I take
but for someone else
–
I call my ex wife
to say sorry
that I wouldn’t change
anything I did
but I’m sorry
