but I’m taking it to class tomorrow… I wanted to show a favorite poem to my students… I wanted to show them a poem that is easy to read, tells a story, and makes me happy all around and decided on this one.

The Rural Carrier Discovers
That Love Is Everywhere

-by T.R. Hummer

A registered letter for the Jensens. I walk down their drive
Through the gate of their thick-hedged yard, and by God there they are,
On a blanket in the grass, asleep, buck-naked, honeymooners
Not married a month. I smile, turn to leave,
But can’t help looking back. Lord, they’re a pretty sight,
Both of them, tangled up in each other, easy in their skin-
It’s their own front yard, after all, perfectly closed in
By privet hedge and country. Maybe they were here all night.

I want to believe they’d do that, not thinking of me
Or anyone but themselves, alone in the world
Of the yard with its clipped grass and fresh-picked fruit trees.
Whatever this letter says can wait. To hell with the mail.
I slip through the gate, silent as I came, and leave them
Alone. There’s no one they need to hear from.