*

*

You already know the secret

That shimmers in the humid air

Between you and your mother.

*

Your mother knew the secret,

That tangled link

That floated in the space

Between her and her mother

But she forgot it

After she slipped out of

The birth canal

And her mother left her

In the care of the German governess.

That hidden ingredient

The invisible lace

That twines heart to heart

Too easy to unravel with ignorance

Or by simply turning away.

*

My mother’s eyes

Go blank as I stand

Right there in her sight path

Look at me! My heart pleads

Let me see joy in your eyes

*

But she is thinking about something else

She is talking to a parent on the phone.

She is planning the cocktail party.

*

The secret lace that bonds

Is broken.

*