Soup

At the Vietnamese restaurant, one 

orders by number. The man already

seated at the table had begun

to eat his soup,  so rich and steamy

we couldn't help but ask, which one is that?

It was number thirty four, fragrant broth

drowned the vermicelli, thin layer of fat

red with chili floated over a froth 

of beaten egg, crab and prawn the secrets inside

and we learned that pho should be said

fa, like fun without the n, and then, to bed

hunger and curiousity satisfied