Color in Your Cheeks

My heart, the tin man said.

A bag of imitation rhinestones
The bushes in your yard sculpted like animals.  
Hot glue residue scrapped with a butter knife.
Just a few knicks under

the suffice:

How many times would you like to dine here? Yuesf asked. 
What a weird question to ask, Sophia said. 

The story goes:

My heart, the Tin Man said  is made of...
and he trailed off like he always did mid sentence and gazed back out the window of the train. 
The city had turned into tiny lights behind us as we approached an undeveloped part of land.

The mountains were above the city like a theater curtain
or a fish tank backdrop. 


The Tin Man turned in his seat toward me said something again, 
his stiff hair a mass of ocean waves stuck in place. 

Words were coming I promise. 

I bought him a hotdog with extra mustard when we got off the train. He didn't say much then either. 
I bought him a bright blue balloon as we walked the river walk, all these planks making their own noises below. I bought him a jumbo stuffed plush shaped heart with deep velvet reds and white lace trolls to shape its outline. He took it to the water's edge. I ate ginger snaps dipped in honey and sesame seed. The Tin Man got out his lighter - smoked a Cigarillo and held the lighter's flame under his new heart.  It was only a matter of time.  He waited till it was too hot and burnt the tips of his fingers before dropping the regents into the water.

A lot of people out today - the conundrum was people were too warm in the sun and too cold in the shade. Biker's wore sweatshirts, walkers long sleeves with shorts, women rubbed their shoulders vigorously as they powered walked on by. The nearst food vender sold famous clam chowder, oysters on a half shell palmed over wax paper and lemon. A fat businessman sat down beside us and started taking things out of a WalMart sac - carrot sticks, hummus, apple, HoHo, HoHo, HoHo, and a small box Oat Bran. The sun was getting brighter in the sky and I wished I hadn't left my sunglasses at home. The glare caught in the Tin Man's clothes made him reflect so shinny and harsh that I couldn't look at him. We three sat in silence then watching boats move about down stream.