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Nathaniel S. Rounds
Chivalry isn't dead
It’s just in remission
Like a cockroach sleeping
There beneath the stove
In Hell’s Kitchen
And I will gladly open the door for you
While you speed through
Eyes closed to my empty gesture
I will carry your books home
Even though nobody reads books
These days and
I will gladly send a bottle of wine
To your table
Even though you hate wine
And this week only
I will offer you my protection
A gentleman always pours wine for a lady
so that the fire under her skin
will not set the alcohol ablaze.
A gentleman always precedes a lady into a crowd
to shield the innocent
from the power of her gaze.
A gentleman always seizes his hatbrim when a lady passes
so that the whirlwind that follows her
will not carry it off into the street.
A gentleman always opens a door for a lady
so that she may have her sword arm free
to vanquish the villans lurking behind.
(This is also why he carries her packages.)
A gentleman always walks on the streetside of a lady
so that she may, with a white-gloved finger,
tap into place any loose bricks