the music that played at the drive-in
before each show? What was that melody
and who was the couple in the back seat
the first time you unbuttoned my blouse?
Shouldn’t I remember what happened afterwards?

Shouldn’t I remember that summer we swam
naked in the lake before dark when it rained every day
and the towels never got dry? Was that the year
no one came to the cabin and we took in a bedraggled cat,
and there was that one night in August you didn’t come home?

Shouldn’t I remember
when your thighs were so strong,
your hair so thick, and your gait was still steady?
Shouldn’t I remember how to spell your name?

SHOULDN'T I REMEMBER by Marsha Foss


Photo by Ian Dick, used and adapted under CC.