Rolling Rock III

            “Stop drinking alcohol, completely!”

            I hung up with my father and met you at the bar. Pulling on a cold green
long-neck, you said to tell him, “But Dad, alcohol is an important part of my life
right now.” I couldn’t argue with your logic, your stone-colored eyes.

            Later that year the radio reported a conclusive link between breast cancer
and heavy alcohol consumption. “According to the New England Journal of Medicine,
having six or more drinks a week greatly increases a woman’s risk. . .” I looked at
the empties lined up on the coffee table. Good thing I was twenty-four and still
immortal.