Rose, a Person of Interest:
a prose poem
On the day they were married, Rose, in all her wedding glory, kissed Fred, her prince, and he turned into a frog.
Since the post office refused to keep pond life on the payroll, Rose became the breadwinner.
Not only did Rose have to provide daily bread for herself, she had to provide Fred with his daily ration of live insects.
Meanwhile, Fred became so depressed about his green skin that he went to a therapist who said the problem started when he was just a polliwog, a state of being he couldn't remember.
To pay for the therapist, Rose took on a second job. She could barely remember her pre-marriage life of parties and long talks with friends. No one cared about her anymore. Whenever anyone did call, it was always Fred and his progress--or lack of it—that was the subject of conversation.
With the therapist's help, Fred concluded his mother, an evil queen who had always regretted his existence, had cast a spell on him that made him a prince before he was a frog. This made him distrust all women. He became further depressed and took up refuge in the bathtub.
The effort of getting Fred out of the tub so she could shower before work moved Rose from irritation to rage.
An anonymous caller told the police Fred was dead in the tub.
The police are looking for Rose, a person of interest.
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