Custom-
made you wear
what someone made for you
the way you wanted.

The forgetful tie a noose around
the finger
so the loose idea is bound
and the string looks as silly as hell
and might as well.

Elaboration through evolution of that is
the ring.
(the wedding
ring.)

[sounds like someone proposed over the phone
or the way
your parents found out
("Hey!")
and any and all calls around that time.
or room service the day after.
But I just mean ring.]

What could ever be much kinder
than a small-can't miss reminder
So every Tom and Dick and Harry
gets to know that you are married
(nobody has names like that anymore
and never all three in the same room
                                                     or life
but words and customs
have more lives
than any cat
I know.

We have it on THE FINGER
right— if someone cut you off
wrong— if someone cut you in
and is not to show what I own
(that would be kind of rude)

The custom-made red stripe
runs over the grey
though custom may say
"YELLOW gold"
once it was scrap metal
that made the rings of the day
when besides the private unity
(and a million friends and relatives who came to see)
rings were colorwar

Titanium makes plane parts
and there are people made of gold
and the two may fuse
in ten thousand years
or one oven (so I'm told)