The Poet At Liberty To Eat Bread And Butter

butter your crusts thinly

so it will last longer;

the butter I mean

because it's exceptional

and it gleams

like marigolds

from a special mold

imprinted with willows

adown adown a

certain stream

with early ferns

and allusive urns.

a spread for holidays

for your last Christmas on earth.

and bittersweet even

with strawberry jam

(the last spoonful)

scraping the sides of the churn

when the last book's paid for

and you've earned it.

mary angela douglas 20 march 2014