Don’t throw away those

stale slices of squashed bread

still in their plastic sleeve

squeezed into the breadbox

I’ve merged three loaves and

When I have a few more slices

I’ll check for mold and

Cut rectangles across the rest and

Dip them in a butter bath

infused with minced garlic

The oven will bake them

For snacks (not croutons!)

Chased by sweet lemonade and

We’ll remember

 

Before Bernice died

In her 96th year

She taught us

To not give up

on what may seem stale and

of no possible use.

There are still tasty treats and the sweet life

even in someone else’s trash

 

When we share the bread —

a holy communion of laughter — with

each piece a Bernice story

We remember together her garden

that only blooms in our memory

Her ceramics we can hold and

touch, reminding us

how warm and full of life she was

 

We are consumed with the laughs and memories

As we remind ourselves of her strength

and our weakness

How she climbed 3-foot snow banks

while we searched to find an easier way

The time she was 90 and

we worried when she didn’t show up

when she was expected and

discovered after she finally arrived that

she’d climbed atop the garage

To retrieve what had fallen there and

put it to use

before someone threw it away