Crossword
For David
You’re doing a crossword.
I’m working on a puzzle.
Do you love me enough?
What’s the missing word?
Do I love you enough?
Where’s the missing piece?
Yesterday I was cross with you.
You weren’t paying enough attention.
You were cross with me.
I wasn’t paying enough attention.
Our words crossed.
Where are the missing pieces?
What are the missing words?
Yet last night we fit together like words in a crossword.
Pieces of a puzzle.
Credit
Copyright © 2012 by Lloyd Schwartz. This poem originally appeared in The New Republic, December 2012. Used with permission of the author.
Author
Lloyd Schwartz
Lloyd Schwartz
Schwartz’s most recent book of poetry is Little Kisses (University of Chicago Press, 2017). He was named the Poet Laureate of Somerville, Massachusetts in 2019. In 2021, Schwartz received an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship.
Date Published
12/20/2012