an orchestra--a hen is better than an egg tomorrow
by Hezekiah Allen Taylor

when he told me he
will marry her---
this "her" he met
just days ago---

the orchestra threw up
their instruments in disgust
let them fall
bang
clank
click
bong
screech

like curse words
in a Beetle Bailey cartoon

none of us
could convey
that music itself
would never be the same

especially now
that the cello
was cracked in half
and the flute
had been swallowed
whole
by one very hungry tuba

I just lied
and said,
"I'm sure you'll be happy"

and the clarinet
managed to find
a single, high-pitched
squeak of a laugh
as commentary

Francine's Version -- Hezekiah's Version
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