The storm was unexpected
New Yorkers swept inside by snow.
In 4B a woman bathes her lover
careful not to wet his broken hand.
The Egyptian newlyweds
living in the building’s only studio
give their dreamchildren names
underneath a tent of bedsheets.
Twin sisters, designers, in Versace mules
play spin-the-bottle
on their penthouse terrace
with models from Milan.
Alone in her garden apartment
a Venezuelan widow
listens to vinyl records
she once danced to
with her husband.
And outside, on the street,
as the snow unfurls around them
like a ream of white velvet
let loose,
a girl in a scarf
the color of blood red calla lilies
says ‘yes’
to a proposal of marriage
while riding on the turned up handlebars
of her lover’s rusty Schwinn.

Valentine's Day
by Mary Kennedy Eastham

Remember an old love with fondness
not regret.
Pray for World Peace.
Send yourself flowers.
Give all but one to people who matter.
Kiss a child's tears away.
Smooth over love's jagged edges
in a relationship you've been meaning to mend.
Slow down.
Thank someone for being kind to you.
Wake up smiling.
Hold that smile close to your lips all day.
Bury a prejudice.
Kiss someone you love
a long, slow kiss, deep and promising
Like it's the first time.

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