It was another last.
Finishing the baking soda.
That I nursed for at least five years.
Bought at Quakertown Mart.
When we still lived in Dresher.
Bob still worked at Quakertown Hospital.
It was in a large plastic bag.
Spilling over with teaspoons of powder.
To leaven all kinds of fruit breads, cakes.
Apple, peach, berry.
Another last on the list.
Last Passover in the old house.
Last phone call with my cousin.
Last visit with my father.
Last trip to QMart.
To buy baking supplies.
Oatmeal, cornmeal, yeast.
Honey, molasses, sugar.
Produce from the Korean vendor.
Mangoes, avocadoes, persimmons.
Lasts come in every size.
Ubiquitous as the air we breathe.
Till my turn to be the last.
The one to up and leave.
Lynn Benjamin
August 30, 2023
