Those were the days when we could barter things
for goods we only dreamed about and glimpsed
sometimes at the black market— a bottle
of genuine Chivas Regal for a child’s
Fisher-Price nursery rhyme music box,
gold pocket watch or pair of earrings
for a set of down pillows; a crystal
punch bowl for a pair of tennis shoes,
a box of vintage prints for a block
of American cheese— I wonder what
quality of exchange would make for happiness,
now that we have landed on the moon.
In response to Via Negativa: Bequest.