There was a night when friends were near
and, Oh Christ, we laughed as the jokes were told.
Funny quick lines of turned-around wit,
long rambling stories of salesmen weary and maidens willing.
We drank beers and smoked cigarettes, one after another
and the laughs were like that, easy, one after another.
Later, the talk turned sad, someone would lose a mother,
a child was ill and the Flanagans would be transferred to Saudi Arabia.
When the evening was over, we remarked upon the fun.
Nothing was done or undone, the world remained the same,
but God, did we laugh that night.
Elsa Bonstein is the only child of Finnish immigrants. She grew up on a farm in rural Maryland where she devoured books in between farm chores. She dreamed of becoming a poet someday. It’s never too late to late to try.