for Lauren
I’ll just say it—
I envy you, love.
Up and down the narrow
rickety stairs with
(I’ll say this too)
an embarrassing amount
of what we kept
but did not need
while the real work, the work
of combing the ratty hair of the past
is done—dusty
photos, baby clothes
the mother’s day card
from your daughter, the one
when she explained,
in no uncertain detail,
how a truly great mother
would give her daughter
riding lessons.
(The Blue Mountain Review, 2019)