Companions


She lived with words in a tall white house.
Hundreds of books lined her shelves.
They smelled like time, they smelled like rain.
I was ten when I found this friend.
Cherry pie steaming on top of the stove...
We sat till it was cool.

She lit up like a lantern when I rang.
Tell about your teachers, your work.
Who's the bad boy again?
Have you seen that dog that bit you under the eye?
The plates were stacked beside the pie.
Her husband had died before we were born,
but she didn't live alone.
She lived with words.

Naomi Shihab Nye