let's call it rule no. 4

to covet
for public display
and private consumption
a collection of many or of few
but each with a history
known primarily to you

choices
of this magnitude
should not be left
to chance
or the internet

delicate consideration
of quirks you can live with
(character, you know)
and wounds
(fatal from the start)

the anticipation of the start
the stolen moments of ‘just one more’
but then
point
finale

shortly, this one too
finds its place
amongst the treasured
the tried, and tried again
or the forgotten
but all part of the journey for that perfect one

this time
surely to be found
in that teetering stack
of books
beside my bed.