Diorama 1871 (outside the store, on the steps, as she hoists a sack of flour onto her hip and strokes her son’s cheek)
BY CATIE ROSEMURGY
for Sarah
Too bad for her
this scene isn’t actually happening.
Too bad for her
every day is see-through.
Good thing
the boy has some metal in him and can use it
to clamp onto her skirt.
Too bad
the afternoon doesn’t have sharper edges
she could press deeper into herself.
Too bad
she’s already been cut into the shape of a girl
walking alone in the woods at night.
Good thing
a woman is always in at least
two different worlds.
Good thing
the boy doesn’t flicker, even though
his face is hard to look at, like a light.
Too bad
anything that stops moving
turns into more white pines.
Good thing
the boy is squinting at her
which will help to form a seal.
Too bad
when she steps toward him,
she ends up in a forest.
Good thing
the boy is a sack of seeds
and will form a canopy.
Good thing
a soothing coolness will mark the place
where he begins.
Too bad
she walks until she spots the bright bird
that will lead her farther and farther away.
Too bad
she has to match every single type of loneliness
to its corresponding shape as a leaf.
Good thing
night in a forest is made of a soft wood
and easily pares away into a pile of curled shavings.
Good thing
a woman can pick up a child and hold him
Good thing
at the same time, she can keep whittling away
at the edges of so many different worlds.
