enter your amount here

you study the electric bill
as if it might
be a poem you are trying
to dissect,
you turn it over
and over, unfolding the three
sheets of paper
of small print and even
more smaller print
which no one
could possibly read without
a magnifying glass.
you find the box
that says pay this.
tearing at the perforated
line of where to rip. it says
enter your amount, so you
write the numbers in.
it's more than last month.
much more. you get up
and go over to the box to lower
the heat two notches, then
you enclose a check.
you seal the envelope
and smooth a Christmas
stamp onto the right corner.
you place it on the table
near your keys, so you
won't forget, then you
open the next bill, it's
thick with old news too,
marked American express.