Regret Tastes Like

Regret tastes like...

when I was a child, I discovered
that regret has a unique flavour.
indeed, it has more than one
and we all become connoisseurs
the more opportunities we get.
the white-hot chilli of shame
burns and writhes in our guts.
a bitter grapefruit of foolishness
when we know,
we should have known.
and quiet maudlin regret, salty
like tears (or salt spray on a car window
as it leaves the seaside)
and the piquant banquet,
combination of all of them
that I only taste when I think
of you

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