… Me Shade a Bower for Thee

My wife and I are being shown
The White House by our son
Who works in White House
Communications,
We have just left the press
Room over FDR’s old
Swimming pool site.
Our son jokes with his friend
In the Secret Service then
We stroll along the path into
The rose garden where it is rumored many years earlier a Secret Service
Agent at dusk tripped over
President Johnson and the First Lady invisible between rose bushes.
I step off the path to hold and
Smell a rose,
The voice of our son’s Secret Service friend comes on an audio
System and mirthfully threatens,
“... tell your Dad to step back onto
The path or we will have to ... him.”
I carefully let go of the rose
Slowly step back onto
The path and out of sight
Of the residence wing.
Our son smiles giving
Me the look and one
Raised eyebrow
As my wife
Giggles
Softly.