Poem: Aaron and Helene

My back is feeling better today. I do my exercises downstairs on the bed I bought at Best Mattresses, I think it's called.

I bought two of them. The other is in my bedroom.

Scott just stopped over. Dr Foxhall gave him medicine to help him pee out his kidney stones. He thinks he just passed anudder one. At least he's not in agony like thother day when he was writhing on the floor.

When I walked into the kitchen the sun was setting.

The clouds looked like mountains and the parking lot of Keystone Screw looked like a huge smooth river.

It was very important to me that I wrote that.

Incredibly beautiful, like the "Incredible Ruth Deming" that Rem wrote on my envelope filled with stamps.

Shoot! Just lost some of my words.

Made Bean Soup from Harry and David. Took forever for the great northern beans to soften. Sarah said I should have soaked them.

Delicious.

Also plumped up a pkg of dried fruit. My friend Helene Ryesky used to call it compote when I'd go over her house on Bauman Drive in Maple Glen. PA.

Husband Aaron would be doing a jigsaw puzzle on the dining room table.

I was so fortunate to have them as friends.
.
In the dining room was her collection of African violets.

Good god I could go on about them.

Just talked to my sister Ellen. Mom is home from Abington Hospital but went right to sleep.

Such a worry.

'AARON AND HELENE

Who knew that years later he would
die of complications of Parkinson's
with a few strokes in between
or that she would end up in an
Injun-named warehouse for
the elderly, biding her time,
biding her time till uncle death
crunched her bones and sailed
off with her.