Friday, February 7, 2020

Blue Pages 3.6 — Gale Acuff

. . .

Death Minus 15

I don't want to die but I don't want not
to so I guess that means I'm still alive
--I said as much after Sunday School to
our teacher, Miss Hooker, before I said
So long, see you next week, that's next Sunday,
but I never really got the chance to
say so because Miss Hooker knelt before
me, her skirt so wide, like Cinderella's,
maybe, that I wasn't sure if she was
on her knees or only bowing and when
she stood upright again I forgot to
notice but anyway while she was bend
-ing maybe she looked into my eyes face
to face, so to speak, maybe eyeball to
eyeball is better, and said Gale, never
doubt that God and Jesus and the Holy

Ghost love you and as long as you're as good
as you can be you won't have to fear death,
and then she was on her feet once more, tall
or at least taller than I am again
and having to look down at me, but then
she's 25 to my 10 but one day
maybe I'll be even taller than she
is and her husband, too, if she has one
by then and if not maybe she'll have me
though she'll still be taller in age, fifteen
years higher always, I'll never match up
'til we're both dead, which is, I guess, the same
age but I'm not sure if there's a number
for it, maybe I'll ask that next week, if
I'm not dead before then, that is, or she
neither. But I might just ask anyway.





- Gale Acuff





1 comment: