Show Me the Place, 27

“Show me the place.”

Duke Senior in As You Like It (2.1)

323 College Court; Kent, Ohio; 1969–72

Our first apartment, there in Kent—

And it is where we gladly spent

Our first three years of marriage. It

Was in a cul-de-sac—a hit

With us. And just across the street?

My principal! Mike Lenzo. (Neat!)

A bedroom, kitchen, and a bath—

And living, dining—do the math—

Oh, not much space for Joyce and me—

But, oh, a form of ecstasy.

Joyce walked to classes up the hill—

Then back again, where she’d instill

In me the lessons that she’d learned—

Oh, in this marriage, what I’d earned!

I took my classes up there, too—

Both nights and summers—lots to do.

And then our little boy was born—

So we moved on (oh, we were worn!).

The place still stands—and I am glad,

Reminding me of all we’ve had.