Nilsa Mariano

Le Menu de la Vie

the menu lists the life
I can’t afford
the constipated waiter
watches me carefully
his surveillance
tells me he knows I may not
be long here
pockets chagrined
contents sparse contrite
through the window I view
a flowering cherry tree
with hanging limbs that
mirror my weeping finances
compunctious regrets
that my beautiful new dress
ate my lunch
the tap of my fingers
a signal of surrender
the ladies room is around
that wall he sighs
giving me an exit

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Nilsa Mariano graduated Binghamton University with a Masters in Comparative Literature. At heart she is a Brooklyn girl. Nilsa was published in Muleskinner, Five Minute, Wildgreens, and Stone Canoe. She is proud of being published in the inaugural edition of Chicken Soup for the Latino Soul. Nilsa prefers crushed ice.