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Leaving the Motel
Outside, the last kids holler Near the pool: they’ll stay the night.
Pick up the towels; fold your collar Out of sight.
*holler: cry out loud, shout.
Check: is the second bed Unrumpled, as agreed? Landlords have to think ahead In case of need,
Too. Keep things straight: don’t take The matches, the wrong keyrings— We’ve nowhere we could keep a keepsake— Ashtrays, combs, things
* keepsake: anything kept, or given to be kept, as a token of friendship or affection; remembrance
That sooner or later others Would accidentally find. Check: take nothing of one another’s And leave behind
Your license number only,
Which they won’t care to trace; We’ve paid. Still, should such things get lonely,
Leave in their vase
An aspirin to preserve Our lilacs, the wayside flowers We’ve gathered and must leave to serve A few more hours;
That’s all. We can’t tell when We’ll come back, can’t press claims, We would no doubt have other rooms then, Or other names.
∝In poetry, enjambment ( or ; from the French enjambement) is incomplete syntax at the end of a line;[2] the meaning runs over from one poetic line to the next, without terminal punctuation. Lines without enjambment are end-stopped.
The title and details of "Leaving the Motel" indicate the situation and setting: Two secret lovers are at the end of an afternoon sexual encounter in a motel room (perhaps one is speaking for both of them), reminding themselves not to leave or take with them any clues for “others” (line 13)—their spouses?—to find. Whereas many poems on the topic of love confirm an enduring attachment or express desire or suggest erotic experience, this poem focuses on the effort to erase a stolen encounter. The two lovers have no names; indeed, they have registered under false names. They have already paid for this temporary shelter, can’t stay the night like other guests or build a home with children of their own, and are running through a checklist of their agreements and duties (“Check,” “Keep things straight,” “Check” [lines 5, 9, 15]). Other than the “wayside” lilacs (line 22), the objects mentioned are trivial, from matches and keyrings to license numbers. The matter-of-fact but hurried tone suggests that they wish to hide any deep feelings (hinted at in the last two stanzas in the wish to make “claims” or preserve flowers [line 26]). The failure to express love—or guilt—enhances the effect when the tone shifts, at the word “still” (line 19), to the second thoughts about leaving something behind. The poem’s short rhyming lines, sounding brisk and somewhat impersonal, contrast with the situation and add to the tone of subdued regret that nothing lasts (463-64/795-96).
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