valentine flowers

i get into a tussle

with a young fellow at the Safeway

grocery store.

some hipster

with a greasy haircut

and a tight suit on.

there's only

one bouquet of flowers left

that we both reach

for at the same time.

we wrestle over it,

petals flying everywhere.

stems breaking,

finally the store manager

comes over to break it up

and does eeny menie minie moe

to decide who gets

the flowers.

the kid wins.

next stop, the cemetery for

a fresh bunch.

the dead don't need flowers.

we do.