Tammy Armstrong (Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada): "Reparations"

We dressed too early for the funeral:
at the card table, third pot of coffee
killing time
with button talk,
how stitches never match eyelets
and you as small boy
taught in French how to repair a torn knee . . .

thick fingered, you thread a needle
tighten each button on the suit jacket
tailored in Thailand
asking if the weave
is worn too shiny
from months in your backpack.

Hours from now I’ll gather the suit
from the kitchen tiles—
stripped as though in flames.
I’ll smooth the shoulder pads
to the wooden hanger,
align the buttons
while you stand, near naked,
in the living room,
Standard Muffler sign
our only light.

© Tammy Armstrong 2006