Unqualified

We met and flirted in a Shakespeare class,

But Romeo and Juliet

Implied true love could never come to pass:

No feast took place the day we met,

We weren't as impulsive as that pair,

As young, or to the manor born,

Or born in Italy, or ever there,

Or by conflicting duties torn,

Or raised by families so racked with spite

That if they met by some mischance

In street or tavern, morning, noon, or night,

They'd pull up short and stare askance,

Snarl blasphemies, draw weapons, and begin

To flail with murderous intent,

Creating such a horrifying din

That a peace-keeping regiment

Would have to be dispatched to reimpose,

With threats and many a cuff and shove,

The shaky armistice between the foes.

Despite these lacks, we fell in love.