you never know

people give
you their business
cards all day long.
here, take my card,
they say happily,
sometimes pulling
one from a special
shiny card case.
plumbers, lawyers,
doctors,
landscapers, cup
cake makers
and magicians.
everyone has a card
with a snazzy
little saying
on the front
telling you what
they do.
you got a card
from an old man
the other day
that had only his name
on it. this is
your favorite
card of all.
the others
have cell phone
numbers, home phone,
fax numbers,
e mail addresses,
mailing addresses
and their names
in colored inks,
and pretty scroll.
they fill up your
wallet, your pockets
and the console
of your car.
by the end of
the month you have
forgotten
every single one
of them and where
you met them,
as you're sure
that they have
forgotten you.
but you keep them
anyway. you never know.