In Times of Need

You imagine money,
enormous bundles of green,
more than you will ever need.
Suddenly it's in every drawer,

in every pocket.
There is money in the toilet,
in the oven, in the ice-box.
It is piled up in the yard

like leaves. You take your wife
and hold her in your arms.
You squeeze her with joy
and money comes out of her mouth.

Neighbors press their faces
against your windows.
The phone gets hot in your hand.
The doorbell plays on.

Lost relatives parachute in
from nowhere. They drop
from the sky with smiles
on their faces, fruitcakes clutched

in their trembling hands.
The sick rise and come forward.
Even the mailman winks and grins
as he delivers word from afar.

You imagine burning money.