The faint rattle of dice rolling
Late at night
No one else hears—
They are wagering over me, placing bets,
The high rollers and their sidekicks
On their knees.
Little Joe from Baltimore,
Ada from Decatur.
The noise of bones,
The hush after each roll
Keeping me awake—
God’s throw or devil's?
My love holding her hands over my eyes
As we inch toward the stairs
Stripped down to our underwear
And liable to slip and break our necks.
Charles Simic (2005)
