Sopranos

I had a good rapport with Quinine Clement,

with whom I had a special sort of kinship.

She was a sister to me before I even married Juniper.

She also was in truth an atheist,

and knew this to be so for all her life.

And so, though she was younger by a year,

she was the more assured one of the sisters.

Her boyfriend — later husband — Franklin Rose,

with whom she’d later have Alacrity

(the older cousin of my little Jason),

would join us when we went to Bo-De Foods.

A double date, of sorts? That’s how I saw it,

though Juniper and I were only friends.

Maybe the three of them, all college students,

were babysitting me, a high school senior.

That’s also possible, in retrospect.