When she dropped
her love bombs on me
my senses short circuited
my mind turned to mush
my heart blew up
with premature love
for a woman I barely knew
whose ways I hadn’t discerned

friends said something’s off with her
but I couldn’t see it
her love bombs had
taken their intended effect on me

then one day she didn’t
show up for an important date
when I was going to
ask her to marry me

I saw her on the Six O’Clock news
arrested for killing an ex-husband
in faraway Arkansas
and two more in Texas

her love bombs defused
I got down on my knees
and thanked the Lord for saving
me from getting black widowed.

Bob Boyd