Return to the Drink

He sat across the table
stirring his Italian soda,
watching the bubbles
shake free of the straw,
rise to the surface,
and dissolve,
returning to the drink.

"Everything we've known
as normalcy
for the past four years
is going to change,"
he said.

Of course
he used different words then
and I don't remember
all of them,
but the words
weren't as important
as the tone
of his voice.

It sounded heavy,
like from the weight
of an anchor.