We have our Helen
and he has his Helen.
Our Helen smiles
and speaks sweet English
with a United Kingdom flair,
his Helen demands he gets the cheese she likes and the crackers she has grown fond of,
his Helen goes to AA meetings,
our Helen tells children stories
in several languages,
his Helen speaks stern English
commending,
we want to keep our Helen,
She is sweet,
He seeks a way to give up
his Helen
an addiction to an addict for forty years,
while the middle east fought wars,
his Helen fought her inner battles
and both battles had produced casualties.
We want to keep our Helen
and he will have to live with his Helen
who pays for her cheese and crackers
and for him.
We will keep our Helen
and leave him to live
with his Helen
in his way
while we make our way
with our Helen
As long as she will have us,
his Helen is not to be lost,
She digs her nails in his pockets
and stubbornly insists
he serves her as only
his Helen can
and our Helen never will.