Wanda’s Hope


i.
I massage your shoulders and listen to the thoughts
you try to hide your coarse skin
has never deterred me: I know you.
I sit on your back
and swing at the demons.
I wish I could hide your skeletons. See how
they stalk you. See how hard you fight them off.
You roll over, grab my fist.
It’s in my blood Wanda.
I slap your face -
no its not.
Your eyes close, fall
back into the emptiness
of your own world.

ii.
While you are sleep, I take the test.
I take another, and another, and another.
I want to be sure this time.
A pigeon flies in the window, falls dead on the floor.
The eyes have been crushed.
I fling her out the window.
Mother won’t get her way this time.

iii.
You wake up, look at me, its morning.
No clock to punch.
You grab me.
You love me. I know you do.
We’ll get it right, I make good money, we’ll be ok,
you have your savings, you’ll win, we’ll laugh,
I have news for you Oscar. 


Published in Baltimore Review 2007