the traditionalist

throws down his coat in the

puddle, always wraps his arm

around,

squeezes her in public, goes to

church on sunday, shows her off to

his mom, takes her to his favorite bar,

lets her wear his sports jerseys,

considers himself “the provider,”

considers himself “the head of the house,”

considers himself

at the peak of his masculinity---

has a big gun in the crib, has a big truck in

the driveway,

tucks in his shirt at all times

except on weekends,

wears shorts & has a perpetual beer in

hand on saturday---

reads the bible like he never read it before,

or the torah, or the koran,

but never wavers from the three so as to

not seem

too

far

off---

plans a wedding in the Spring,

accumulating the bank for a rug rat in the

Fall,

move in with her,

move with her from the apt. to a house,

move from rent to a mortgage,

got a lil’ green lawn that he cuts when in

his shorts/beer on Saturday,

flirts with the MILF across the street,

gets a dog & talks to him more than

“his woman”---

uses the word “b***h”

more frequently, as the wedding grows near,

then abstaining for a clear month just before that

“blessed event”---

puts up a white picket fence round his lil’ lawn

when they get back from the honeymoon &

after she finds out she’s pregnant,

he sits down to write out what his son will become,

because that is what works with the plan,

he’s got to have a son,

because there are things that he didn’t take the time

to do,

which his son will do &

there are things that he had a short ambition for & then wrote off,

which his son will run the long run on &

accomplish &

if she has a daughter,

well, then, she will have

another & if she won’t, if she can’t,

he’ll “convince her” or he’ll

trade her in &

as his thinking begins to grow darker,

as he begins to spin his webs

behind the television that’s always on &

the white picket fence,

he’s just perfectly ready to become a father,

to condemn someone who

never had a chance.