The Present.
I bought you a present today.
Just a little token of appreciation.
Just a little something, you might say.
A token of affection or a confirmation.
I kept the receipt.
Kept it just in case.
This gift I bought so hastily, but still.
I kept the receipt.
Made a point of asking, the lady at the till.
“The receipt please.” I pleaded.
I’ll need it just in case.”
“In case it’s not her colour or just not to her taste.”
The colour too stark, too dark, too light, too bright.
So, I hung onto the receipt just the way you like me to.
You can return it to the store if you don’t like it.
Return it to the store if you don’t want it anymore.
Change it, re arrange it, go for something better.
I’ll slip the receipt inside the bag or in the wrapping paper.
In case you change your mind, now or sometime later.
The important things seem to pass us by.
We hold onto receipts for everything we buy.
A sign that we’re unsure about the things we want to keep.
So we tuck it in dark places, out of sight and out of reach.
Just like our love.