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Poet's Corner

SWEET AND SOUR

24-09-2007

Sentimentality Alert! Well, sort of. Brendan Hawthorne marks his 22nd wedding anniversary with a can of own brand supermarket sauce. Lovely.

I didn't forget our wedding anniversary

I bought you flowers

your favourite colours

and arranged the meal

even though it was complementary

You didn't forget our wedding anniversary

I held out my hands

closed both my eyes

to receive my awaited present

and got two harvest festival functionaries

I stared in disbelief on our wedding anniversary

On the left towered

a can of supermarket own brand

sweet and sour sauce

with serving suggestion at the ready

In stunned disbelief on our wedding anniversary

I looked to the right

and crinkled a foil sealed

packet of sausage casserole mix

with full dietary information commentary

I swore on our Wedding Anniversary

and questioned

whether this is all those 22 years

of partnership amounts to

then cussed at breeding familiarity

I had a profound sense on our Wedding Anniversary

that in all our time together

you've given of yourself every single day

and still cared enough to have a sense of humour

and realised there's no other girl I'd marry!