bad news

the mailman is weeping.
he sits on your step.
I have bad news he says.
holding out a letter addressed
to you.
he's opened it and holds
it in his curled hand.
i'm sorry he says
to bring this to you.
I felt it might be bad news,
so I opened it and read it
and read it again.
you comfort him, you bring
him tea. you tell him it's okay.
you offer him a blanket
and a pillow so that he might
lie down on
your porch and rest.
it's okay, you tell him.
bad news as they say will
keep. don't give it to me
if it bothers you so much.
i'll find out eventually.
this makes him smile.
thank you he says. thank
you. he folds the letter
back into the envelope
then puts it into his
stachel. he waves to you
and says thank you once
more before going down
the sidewalk to the next
door.