it's a stubborn knot

it's a stubborn

knot

on this lace,

it's preventing me

from

going on with my day.

i try everything

from a fork

to a knife.

i take the shoe off

and bite into

the thick

knot, gnawing at

it.

i see the mailman at the door

and limp

over

to greet him

and get the mail,

knot?

he says.

hate that. here, he says.

try this pen.

i use it to get the knots

out of my boots all the time.

he comes in

and sits at the kitchen

table.

let me try, he says,

setting his mail bag down.

turn on the big light.

i fix him a cold drink,

and a sandwich, while

he works on the knot.

this is a tough one he says.

when my wife was around she

could dig the knots

out with her dagger like nails.

hey, he says.

this might take a while, do

you mind finishing

my route for me, just ten

more houses.

sure, i tell him.

i take his bag and wrap

the strap around my

back and neck.

he hands me his hat which

i press down

on my head, then off i go

to deliver the mail.

when i come back.

he's asleep on the couch with

the dog,

my shoe is on his chest.

the knot still in place.

it's a stubborn one