don't wake the cards
charles simic

since my chronic bad luck
vanished in my love's deck of cards,
i step around them softly,
i won't open the window on windy days.

i unpin her long black hair
and strip down her dress myself,
lest their flutter stir the dead air
and make the cards fly.

i tell her, don't even think
about picking up a broom
or dancing with your boobs flapping.
lie back in my arms

and watch the light fall
golden over us
in wordless silence.
don't wake the damn cards.

¶ 7/21/2005 07:24:00 PM