For KLT

sometimes she’ll read poetry 

on the days she ties her brown hair back into a loose bun

pushes her thick-rimmed glasses back above her head

and sits with you as one

she promises she will teach you all that she knows 

that her wisdom will reach out 

take you by your ear

and pull you up to your deliverance

she speaks of poets she believes are wonderful

letters tangle in the air, each line a whispered guide

and maybe one day you’ll be a beautiful writer

and you’ll learn to write stories that end 

she says someday she’ll tell you about her time in England

by the water

where the writers and thinkers

drink red wine in downtown apartments

and sway in sync with tunes you wish to hear

and one day you will know all that she knows

how to compose and compartmentalize your thoughts  

how to extricate your soul from your body and splay it out for the world 

how to sew your limbs back together with fine needles 

and entwine yourself with pen and ink