“Winter and the Red Beret”

You’ve been with me;

My lopsided ear,

Careening over the ground from

Up above.

Like a child molding into his mother’s arms

And staying put, to drink in the light.

But you bright and wild

Took to my forehead every first snowfall.

After school and homework

Knitted and sparse

My small fitted cap

Stretched over coarse hair

Having seen me through everything

Relationships,

Friendships and

Our visits to the farm.

I purchased you at the mall

Moping and sad that day.

And just when it seemed nothing could

Make me happy-

Part of a montage of accessories and a

Full-blown spending spree.

And I remember thinking,

“What was I thinking?” after

I paid three dollars and twenty-one cents

And you were

Referred to as a “shmata” for the

Rest of the year.

And just the other day

After the death of a close friend

I sat there, somewhere between space

And silence.

I found you hidden and matted,

Balled up in last years winter coat

Buried in the pockets waiting for a,

“Surprise!”

And I held you up like a newborn and laughed

At your thread-barren body

How funny that its all come down to a

Red beret,

A silly little hat.