Marriage After the Kids Are Gone

In Valby,
Copenhagen's unglamorous quarter,
Red-brick apartment buidings
Covered in graffiti,
In Hotel Rossini,
Where the locals stay
Avoiding tourist traps downtown,
At breakfast time, an elderly couple
Stands at the restaurant's entrance
Surveying the buffet table.

Without a word, the separate;
She approaches one end of the table
With cheeses and butter
He, at the other end,
Starts toasting slices of white bread.

Sitting down at their table,
They exchange cheese for toast
Still without a word.

With the kids gone,
That's what marriage is:
Knowing exactly the trade--
What cheeses and how dark the toast.