KitKats from Japan
(for Carmel)
If your friend visits Japan
And you warn her
That the long flight and
The jet lag and
The language barrier
Makes the trip
Not seem worth it,
Yet she brings back
Five different varieties of
KitKats
(Five!)
And mails them,
First class,
From Washington to Birmingham,
So they arrive
A little homesick,
Feverish, bruised, and melted,
Misshapen and malformed,
With their crunchy centers
Hugging each other tight
And shifted in the packaging,
You won’t know
Whether to cite
Their stressed condition
And obvious out-of-place-ness
As an easy metaphor
For why that uphill trip
Couldn’t possibly be worth it,
Or whether
Five different flavors of KitKats
(Five!)
Including apple vinegar
And green tea,
Strongly justify
Her trip.
But I know you’d be clueless
About how two of them will taste
Because you don’t read Japanese
(You can’t just google it, you know)
And you’d wonder if
You’re man enough
To eat the apple vinegar.