Friday Night - Sally Henzell

love
why don't you come to me
gently
persistently
as calculated as the regulated ticking
of a clock
the love of a quiet man
a weekday man
a man that brings me roses
but not orchids
a kind man with friendly eyes
and regimental habits
but I have been seduced
by Friday Night
neon lights
and muted jazz seeping up
from dingy doorways
car horns
and lovers quarreling
loud and unashamed
a streetbulb reflected in a puddle
garbage cans
and yesterday's newspapers
and love
given widely
chance meetings
and flirtations of the night
asking nothing more
than that Friday night may end
as Friday night began
taking with her
all she gave
and leaving nothing
for tomorrow

Taken from So Much Things to Say - 100 Calabash Poets