forgetting/forgotten

[Decemberist]

a buffalo nickel or an old wheat penny,
lincoln's beard covers the heart currensee-
like before you made it big in high school,
the five dollar bills we dropped in the wishing-
i wish you wells. smelling salts we poured on
heartfelt hallmark love detecting machines
soured by sentiment and sloppy signatures from
your valentine wannabe's. i gave you a tree for
christmas and you gave me a picture of a gift you
wished to get me but forgot to save up for;
a flannel shirt i wore every so now and often,
hem tight and patterns forgetting and forgotten,
chest pocket eavesdropping on my flit-fluttering
average sized heart, cordorouy buttons tracing
the bow of my vertebrae that you button and
unbutton and
button and
unbutton at will.