A New Broom Sweeps Clean
Francine Witte So, Jen buys a new broom. Every corner of her room is cobwebbed and ghosty. Her old broom huddles in the closet hiding its old broom head. When Tim comes over, beer breath and mouthful of excuses, she notices how dusty he has become. She looks at her new broom with hope. She’s afraid he is too tall and wide for the new broom, and she’s reminded of the other times she struggled with him over ice cream flavors, vacation spots, and of course, the meaning of love. She invites Tim to sit at the kitchen table. Right there, next to the trash. Your shoe is untied, she tells him. When he bends over to tie it, he is small as he’s going to get. She reminds herself of the way he come over last week, lipstick flowers, right there on his neck. Also, how he couldn’t stay for dinner. Also, the texts on his phone. This goes on and on until finally he is barely a speck and then, in one effortless flick, she sweeps him away, the new broom working just fine, after all. |
|
About the Author: Francine Witte is the author of four poetry chapbooks and two flash fiction chapbooks, one of which, Cold June, was the winner of the Thomas Wilhelmus award. She is the editor of FLASH BOULEVARD, an online blog. Her full-length poetry collection, Café Crazy, has recently been published by Kelsay Books. She is reviewer, blogger, and photographer. She is a former English teacher. She lives in NYC.