the way to a picnic

I arrived at the picnic

before i sat upon the blanket
   before i set foot upon the green grass that is the park
       before the burgers were served

i had a quiet and secret conversation with a stranger
while we waited for forty minutes for a bus that never showed

i ate breakfast with my two sons and three of their friends

i went food shopping for milk and eggs

A red-haired child sold me a candy bar as I left the store

I made potato salad

Back at the picnic
   I am tired and sit at a surprisingly cliche picnic table
      covered with a predictable checkered red cloth

the stranger from the bus stop smiles at me
from a distant table

Nothing else is said