I never thought to ask
why I was born in November.
A friend told me to count the months
backwards to Valentines day.
A Hallmark created holiday
vanished my parents’ mid-life divorce.
So that is why my first four months lived
felt winter’s frost daily.
And why I live the paradox of being
a desert animal that wears the sign of water.
copyright © 2022 Kenneth P. Gurney
Umflop 