Pink petals and emerald leaves sing out insistent summons
Pick me and bring me home…my name is Tiffany Rose
Siren calls the doting couple pierced by Cupid’s bow
Place setting for a group of 12, not enough she warns,
“One extra plate, just in case.”
First argument of the loving pair erupts in that store
Bridal accoutrement flowing from shelves and glass cases
“But what if we break one, dear…” she cajoles with flattery
Fiancé acquiesces, a baker’s dozen it shall be then
“One extra plate, just in case.”
Newlywed novices prepare first Thanksgiving feast
Burnt rolls, lumpy potatoes and a turkey less than sublime
In-laws and out-laws envelope the gregarious table
A dozen folks sharing stuffing and family scuttlebutt
“One extra plate, just in case.”
Honeymoon forgotten, progeny in quick succession
John Jr. arrives a 10-pound bundle bouncing joy to life
Then Tiffany bounds into their lives, TR for short
“Mommy where did I get my name?” prompts laughter
“One extra plate, just in case.”
Christenings, birthdays, and parties overflow their home
Celebrations sacrosanct and shindigs secular surround the dining table
A dozen invites always sent, a crimson rose smiling from every dish
Attendees know the drill and mouth a call for the empty placemat
“One extra plate, just in case.”
TR pours wine, John Jr. makes a toast, all eulogize the man
Tomorrow his widow will pack her china, movers do the rest
Remnants of a marriage, memories stuffed in boxes, auctioned away
Dozen roses sold to the highest bidder; a single Tiffany Rose remains
“One extra plate, just in case.”
- About the Author
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Living my personal mission statement, “Each One, Teach One,” my greatest blessing is being the mother of two, grandmother of three and a lifelong educator. A graduate of UF and UNF, I am the former principal of St. Paul’s Catholic School in Jacksonville Beach, Florida and executive director of Tree Hill Nature Center in Jacksonville.
Since retirement my avocation is now my vocation – freelance writing. The technical writing of past professional life evolved into more creative genres of poetry, short fiction and memoir. My goal is to invoke the entire spectrum of human emotions in my reader: longing to laughter, pain to promise, despair to discernment.
