we didn’t blame him
for his inability to nourish
or the absence of flavor
exposed by a plastic serving utensil
or his elation
in watching his offering
rapidly turn into waste
like so much did
and sometimes we found comfort
in the reflection we saw
in the mixture of saliva and cake
spilling from the mouths of others
who chewed
as applause
but we did resent the feast
and the baker
for serving what he did
and the microwave
for demanding something be placed
on its spinning plate
and the celebration
that seemed to last longer
than we all wanted
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