Ring Upon Your Finger

We wandered through
a mall in New Orleans,
on a sweltering afternoon
in the pre-Katrina days,
checking out the shops,
eating blizzard balls
and getting portraits taken.

We had a half hour
to wait for pictures
and frames to be ready.
Zales Jewelers had rings
in a window display
designed to catch the eye.

We walked in to try bands.
"This looks really nice,
but I want to try on more."
I shuffled feet, didn't want
to seem to be blamed for boredom.
"I think the pictures are ready."

27 minutes and 900 dollars later,
We wandered out of
a mall in New Orleans,
into a sweltering afternoon
in the pre-Katrina days,
with two packets of pictures
and a ring on Monica's finger.