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Taking Forever One Day at a Time
by
Alarie Tennille


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I love

the way you return from errands
with a present — a Danish, book, or bottle
of champagne

how you thank me for every meal
from coq au vin to a ham sandwich
and make coworkers think
I'm Julia Child

hearing your voice in conversation
downstairs before realizing
that you're talking to the cats
in the same serious tone you use
with plumbers

how you told me I was funny long before
anyone else did

that time in France when I said our waiter
looked like Orlando Bloom and you answered
then we'll have to come back tomorrow

the fun of reading a book you've just finished
and finding oops! duh! or what a jerk!
penciled in the margin

the way you reach for my hand
before crossing the street

how you describe every dark-eyed
brunette — she looks like you — no matter
how silver I go.

No wonder forty years have sneaked by.


This poem first appeared in Minute Magazine.
Used here with permission.

 



Alarie Tennille was born and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia. A Phi Beta Kappa, she graduated from the University of Virginia in the first class that admitted women. Alarie and her husband, graphic artist Chris Purcell, live in Kansas City, Missouri, where she serves on the emeritus board of The Writers Place. Alarie believes her writing skills were born from her parents' knack for storytelling-long, meandering tales she asked to hear again and again. “There was usually dance music in the background,” she says, “the sounds of cicadas, and the clink of ice in glasses of sweet tea. Weekends brought rolling surf, laughing gulls, and the calliopes of amusement park rides.” Alarie's third and most recent poetry collection is Three A.M. at the Museum. She was honored to receive a 2020 Fantastic Ekphrastic Award from The Ekphrastic Review. Learn more about her at www.alariepoet.com.

              


   

 


Post New Comment:
Anastasia:
The unique connection and satisfaction of a healthy, long-term relationship!
Posted 02/11/2024 03:59 PM
BAMars:
What a great poem!
Posted 02/09/2024 06:44 PM
peggy.turnbull:
I love this poem--it's beautiful and it truthfully expresses the joy of a long marriage.
Posted 02/09/2024 03:25 PM
Lori Levy:
Beautiful and tender.
Posted 02/09/2024 02:42 PM
Sharon Waller Knutson:
I love this Valentine's Day poem from one of my favorite poets. It shows the power of love and what a soul mate does for their Valentine every day of the year. day
Posted 02/09/2024 11:40 AM
BethRJ:
Love just oozes from the words!
Posted 02/09/2024 11:29 AM
joecot:
Now that's a love poem!
Posted 02/09/2024 11:15 AM
Leslie Hodge:
Lovely!
Posted 02/09/2024 11:02 AM
Glen Sorestad:
I loved this poem!
Posted 02/09/2024 10:55 AM
EstherJ:
This is so sweet.
Posted 02/09/2024 10:35 AM
NormaB:
Sounds like a lucky couple immortalized in a poem!
Posted 02/09/2024 08:50 AM
Wilda Morris:
Delightful! It is the simple things that often count most in life.
Posted 02/09/2024 08:30 AM
Larry Schug:
Life and Love, simple, yet complicated.
Posted 02/09/2024 07:51 AM
wayne.goodling@yahoo.com:
I somewhat know your husband because of the things you notice and report. Thank you.
Posted 02/09/2024 07:37 AM


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