A woman asked a man, both strangers, if
His daughter attended Winlaw Elementary.
She was contemplating enrolling her daughter,
Who appeared to be about the same age.
The body language and sociality of greeting
Were not wholly unique to human apes, but
Consider the remarkable information exchange
In the query and reply. No, we’re summer residents.
It’s probably possible to parse this slight slip
Of conversation entirely in terms of the needs
Of the individual animals communicating,
But why bother? As anxious as the mother
Might be to find out about the local school
Or find a friend for her daughter, as much
As the father might think it would be good
For his own daughter to strike a friendship,
Almost all the business is transacted in the puffs
Of breath and among the laboriously installed
Systems of memory for the same language.
The words are really talking to each other
As populations of frogs hop between ponds.
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