to
mark the path
between
the pickup truck
and
the porch steps,
to
measure the distance
from
the porch steps
to
the straw mat
The
wedding guests
wipe
their shoes
Heavy
lace curtains
A
single bare nail driven
into
the plaster
Dust
on the floor too fine
for
the corn broom to catch
Water
burbling on the stove
Run
your hand along
the
smooth, solid bannister
Upstairs
flutter of paper
The
fathers bicker
as
is their ritual
The
bride’s thick braid
hangs
between the parted blades
of
a pair of garden shears
It
hangs there a long time
A
pail of very cold water
An
empty clothesline
The
guests shuffle their feet
Cough
quietly into their clean sleeves
The
chickens scratch in the dirt by the fence
clucking
their incessant questions
The
ax head buried deep in the block
has
only one word with which
to
answer them
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