1. This may sound prescriptive and
authoritarian, but you must trust me:
it comes from a place of loss.
You will give up
what is left of your time
to the methodical process
of unfolding first
your clean linens and lunch
and then afterwards
your interests and such.
There will be time enough later for leaf-eyed
custodial duties.
2. I recognize in reverse order
your uncle Joey, your cousin Sarah,
your nana, Matilda,
and your own little snowflake, Persephone,
in your quiet concentration
If a little nibbling of the lip could be
sturdy and mid-western, well--
3. say:
"A little pretension will not hurt him,"
then
"I taught my son to describe his mood as
mixolydian."
We all suspect that he is very popular in banjo class,
but if he rides that recumbent bicycle to school,
it's all over but the therapy.
4. On the morning of the funeral,
I made a choice
about how I behave at funerals.
I would ask that you read
this eccentricity as vulnerability.
