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Be Honest

she says. How’s he doing out there? Just back
from my walk with her husband—legally blind,
on his electric scooter, gleefully aiming
himself into the bright haze.

Well… I begin but can’t finish & anyway she knows
the rest. It wouldn’t be such a bad way for him to go,
she says, more to herself than me.
(O the glory. The freedom. The flight.)

But we both grow quiet, picturing the fragile story-
lines he might shatter & agree without saying—
with all its breathtaking splendor, his freedom-ship
has had its last sail.

—
Prartho Sereno is the author of five prize-winning poetry collections, including Indian Rope Trick (Blue Light Book Award, 2018) and most recently Starfall in the Temple. Poet Laureate Emerita of Marin County, CA, she taught poem-making to children in grades K through 12 as a California Poet in the Schools for over 21 years and currently teaches “The Poetic Pilgrimage: Poem-Making as Spiritual Practice” online.

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