Cordiality

By John Grey

I am mildly warmed
when strangers say “hello” to me on the street.
And modestly proud of my sociability
when I say “hi” in return.
Greeting those I know feels so perfunctory.
Even when I’m glad to see them,
the gladness is low on the scale.
The ultimate in warmth
and sociability would be
if Scarlet Johansson
appeared out of nowhere,
gave me a mammoth hug,
and said something like,
“It really is you.”
There’s no chance of that
ever happening of course.
For a start,
this really is me.

 

John Grey is an Australian poet, US resident, recently published in Sheepshead Review, Poetry Salzburg Review and Hollins Critic. Latest books, “Leaves On Pages” and “Memory Outside The Head” are available through Amazon. Work upcoming in Lana Turner and International Poetry Review.