fancy aaron belz He liked the girl too much, The one with strawberry fingernails Who claimed she was too tall To be adequately loved by a man. He listened as she in a small voice Asked about his comic book collection, But it had been ruined in the rain And he did not want to talk much about it. Instead he showed her the ink of letters He had received from an old man, And she feigned interest in this With an elegant regard for his pride. That he liked her too much Never became a topic of conversation, Though he did once mention That her mother must be beautiful, Meaning, must be beautiful too, But by then he was looking down Into his brandy, lost in partial thoughts While she promised to write him New letters, to tell him about the city In which he knew she was becoming Something even more than the woman That she already was, unfolding Into a creature so demure and civilized, So slim, and well-appointed, That he feared her letters Would only bring him more grief.