Boy in the Bookstore

Pointing to King Kong,
the boy, maybe 7, having joined me
at the magazine rack, asks, “Is it a monkey
or a gorilla?” I knowingly opt for gorilla,
but he says, “Gorillas don’t get that big.
It must be a machine gorilla….Do you like
Star Wars?”  “Yes, I do” I reply.
“The third one is my favorite,” he tells me.
Then he says, “Is that the one where
Darth Vader gets his arm chopped off?”
“I’m not sure,” I answer. Giving up on me
rather quickly, I think, he walks away,
and in only a second or two, already
         I miss him.

© 2006 Dennis Ference