A SEPIA PHOTOGRAPH
by Ted Kooser, from A Man with a Rake (2022)
Light brushes coats of brown varnish
over the past, lets each coat dry
for a generation before adding another.
Who were these two people, the man
standing just to her side, his hand
on her shoulder? They've ridden up
to the front of this oval of walnut
and glass on an uncomfortable bench
like those on a Ferris wheel, with
younger couples out of sight but
swinging down and in behind,
and they've rocked to a stop, the man
stepping off and now waiting for her,
while she gathers her skirts and tries to
recall where she set down her smile.
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