I wish I were you, the flower vase
said to the door stop.
You have an immediate function, no doubt about it,
while I have to wait and see if anyone
will use me for what I’m meant to do.
You are used daily – sometimes hourly – and you
must feel important to have such a clear job.
I, on the other hand, can sit for days, weeks, months even, waiting
until finally, someone either sends flowers or
the woman of the house buys them for herself
Her husband dropped that practice
right after the second child was born.
But when I receive the gift
that defines me, I experience joy to
the nth degree. Unlike you, who appear to go through life
with a certain smugness but no real elation
I understand how your function might
feel a bit oppressive, while mine is liberating.
I take it back, I do not wish to be you.
I am grateful to be me.