I forget a stranger’s name
in the same breath
he becomes a friend.
I remember
watercolor eyes, accordion fingers,
rolling nose crinkles, hilltop brows,
laughs eclipsed by upturned lips,
freckles mapped out to precision.
But those two,
three syllables slip.
Yet, a name on the news
without introduction
or context
or consent
leaves its stain.
Maybe the rift between
memorable and unforgettable
is a song I like
and a song I don’t.
