Reservations ii

Nobody picks on the ivy

for slouching, or for creeping

over the edge of the plastic pot

for tapping one tentacle along the sill

and finding the window lever.

It's only when it finds a grip

on the arrow back chair

that Ma gets up and finds the shears.

You'll find no man's land on either side

of any border, a few blank pages 

in between the binding

and the first chapter of any book.

It's where you write, "My dearest nephew,

Many pleasant bedtime stories,"

adding only your initials

and the year.

And it is the page I am always 

turning back to, just in case

there's a part I've missed.