-for my husband
I have climbed you like a flagpole
and left you at half-mast.
I have run roughshod over you
then begged for more.
I have cracked you like a safe
and looted all that I could carry
I have cried on your shoulder
and hung you out to dry.
You are Everest to my Mariana Trench,
a matchstick to my bonfire.
I duck when you deluge
and squint when you shine.
You mean the world to me—
how could it be otherwise?
*after Alicia Ostriker