She has a Zippo

and knows how to use it.

Lights her own

cigarettes

the occasional candle

for an ex-lover –

the stove when it was cold.

Flicks it open

and closed

when nervous.

Keeps the edge

of the lid

sharp

good for drawing

blood

when the answer

is no.

Bill Gainer is a storyteller, humorist, an award winning poet, and a maker of mysterious things. He earned his BA from St. Mary’s College and his MPA from the University of San Francisco. He is the publisher of the PEN Award winning R. L. Crow Publications and is the ongoing host of Red Alice’s Poetry Emporium (Grass Valley, CA). His latest book is: “The Mysterious Book of Old Man Poems.”