she was always
a bit
on the sour side
Aunty Vera
bitching and moaning
about relatives
who had wronged her
or just
plain irritated
the life out of her
it made her happy
the bitching
it made me happy
the knowing it wasn’t me
doing the irritating
at her funeral
I listened
to the praise she received
from those she had bitched about
to the tone-deaf distant uncle
in the pew behind
raising his voice in
loud
joyful
discord
to Aunty Vera
whispering inside my head
something about
a strangled cat
being more tuneful.
it wasn’t until Uncle Tuneless
passed a tissue
over my shoulder
that I felt tears on my cheek
it wasn’t funny
not one bit
but my God, it felt good to laugh
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