Almost

1

Almost all the words we've said to one another are gone
and if they were retrieved, verbatim, we might not acknowledge them.
But the tenor ot our talk
has been constant across decades!
(lenor is what we meant by "soul.")

For instance,
the way we joke
by using non-sequiturs, elliptical remarks
which deliberately suppress context
in advance
of time's rub-out.

2

"When size really counts,"
the billboard says

showing the product
tiny,

in one corner,

so we need to search for it.
Come find me.

I stand
behind these words.