The Art of Restraint and Cool Excuses

from Full Count: The Book of Mets Poetry

She was intrigued
or perhaps just drunk
but she mustered enough courage
to ask me out to lunch, a show, music
I appreciated her opinions and admired the way
she carried herself,
so I popped the big question on her:
“Mets-Braves, gorgeous summer night, you know?”

“Not tonight,” she said

“But, you can come upstairs with me,” she said
with a Mona Lisa smile

Part of me wanted to go up there with her

I thought for a moment, then said,
“No, not tonight, I’m headed to the game,
Mets-Braves, gorgeous summer night, you know?”

She gently shook her head, turned,
then disappeared into the apartment building

Later, when I got to the stadium
I studied the empty seat beside me,
placed a napkin in the center, then my beer,
Then I shifted my eyes toward the part of me
that wanted to go upstairs with her
and said, “Not tonight, pal. Not tonight.”

Frank Messina