Will you meet me at the Tap Room?
It’s been five decades since we parted there
A quiet end to a glorious spring
As You Like It at McCarter, picnics on the canal
Classmates in neckties, their dates in pastels
Laughing at the notion of female Ivy Leaguers
Robert Kennedy was nearly president, I was nearly king
The newest car. Best grades. Prettiest girlfriend.
Wall Street called me, the Peace Corps called you
Maybe if we’d had email . . . . maybe not
You taught in Manila and Zaire
I made money in New York and London
Why move back to my college town?
Less space, more peace
Time to paint. Read to shut-ins. Sip dark roast outdoors
Facebook says you’re nearby, retired and single
No going back when it’s changed more than we have
Lahiere’s closed. The hospital moved. Parking got worse.
Remember the new library? There’s a newer library on that spot
The students wear bowties, the Nassau sells chocolates
I’m once divorced, once widowed
And know where I belong
At last a Democrat (Yes, I owe you $10)
Finally asking for what I want most
Let’s inhale Prospect Gardens
Walk laps around Richardson
Harmonize in the archways
No going back. But we can go forward. Even now
Rebooting, my grandkids call it
So meet me at the Tap Room
Remember when we were new? There could be a newer us on that spot
Maybe just for an evening. . . . maybe not
Loretta Bolger Wish is a writer and editor whose work includes newspaper and magazine articles, short stories, songs, poems, essays, and reference books. She has written and performed short plays and monologues, writes the film blog Hollywood Castaway, and co-moderates the Princeton Library Writers Room. Wish and her husband, Fred, her band mate and frequent writing partner, live at the Jersey shore.
