Clam

I am 17
Returning
Home from
High School
A block away
When I notice
A drawing made
By my mother and
Placed over the hall
Phone the focal point of
Our home which portrays
Two clams at the bottom of
The sea with bubbles floating
Up from one clam to indicate
One clam is speaking and
The clam’s words are
Written at the
Bottom of
The drawing,
“John, speak to me.”
I smile wondering how many
Days or weeks it will take
My father whose name
Is John to notice
And how many
More weeks
Until he
Responds.
He is taciturn
My mother loquacious
He is of southern Baptist origins
She is a Jewish princess
He is a tall athlete
She a petit Artist
He’s rural
She’s
Not.
And yet
They raise
Six kids and
Never divorce
Because they know
How not to communicate.