Roman Holiday

They were accosted on the gondolas of Venice,

The honeymooners, and asked, ‘Why must you love, if you please?’

They hemmed and hawed, made much ado

And then decided to do as Romans do,

Finally declaring, ‘Let it suffice, O Rome,

That we think of each other when we think of home

And if the home and the heart live together

It means we have homes everywhere.’

First published in Altpoetics, 3 February 2014.