Betty the Best
What I remember about you is this
The way you smoked those long brown Mores forever the
way your velour outfits always matched
top to bottom
your quick to giggle your clever wit
your phony German accent
your perfect Catholic School handwriting the way
you danced your little jig your
one ball of chocolate ice cream policy in a green melamine bowl your
river pebble counter top
Your Toll House cookies
And your 5 dollar slips into my pocket
Your sweet hugs
The dent in your derriere from falling down the stairs your
stubborn streak and your opinions
Your feud with Mrs. Foltan
Your delight in Ronald Reagan
Your Hummels by the millions
Your Betty Grable legs
Your disappointment in changes
and some of life’s painful realities
Your painted cutting boards
Your paper skin hands your old lady knuckles
Your Shalimar Guerlain
Your slow to anger
Your daily soap habit and
Oh, how u hated, HATED Roger!
Your huge pimp ass white boat of a car
The way you called me Kimmy
And wanted to take us to The Hearth
And told us to go to Mass
How a pie to the face
always made you laugh
The way you loved it when I combed your hair
Your little single bed
Your golf cart
Your garden
Your pot roast
Your sweet, sweet letters
They way you loved us all, us all
Your ever pinching, ever inching beautiful glass bead rosary
The way you held my baby
As though he was yours, and he was
Yes he was
Because he came from you
And I came from you
You lived with me, you live within me too
And I remember you
And I loved you
What a simple, simple
lovely
enduring
gift