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Crisscross
Crisscross the lines from mother to daughter crisscross the lines raggedy zigzag in wide strokes the mother the daughter crisscross their dull thoughts crisscross their sharp thoughts ziggity zag the lines crisscross their softening lines crisscross the brown lines widening above the blue lines crisscross the dog standing between the daughter and the mother crisscross the daughter’s head falling back to see the mother crisscross the mother’s chin falling forward to see the daughter ziggity zag The dog’s head becomes the mother the dog becomes a horse ziggity ziggity the horse bows his head into the mother’s skirt crisscross the daughter wants to do the same crisscross the daughter looks up at the mother crisscross the mother looks through the horse at the daughter crisscross the daughter waits for the mother to see her crisscross the blue lines soften the mother crisscross the daughter wants a soft mother the mother wants a blurry daughter crisscross The mother waits for the horse to look up crisscross the horse can see and be the mother crisscross the daughter knows the dog loves her crisscross the daughter wonders if she’ll be a son crisscross like the dog became the horse crisscross the daughter misses the dog and the mother crisscross the mother is a horse away from the daughter crisscross the daughter knows the mother is a horse crisscross the horse softens the lines of the mother crisscross the daughter is not a horse The daughter is not a son the daughter is a daughter who the mother sees and doesn’t see when the horse is her skirt when the horse is her legs when the horse crisscross is part daughter and part mother and part dog crisscross the mother looks for herself when she looks for the daughter crisscross the daughter looks for the mother not the horse or the dog or herself crisscross the daughter will always be part of the mother the mother will always be part of the daughter and the horse crisscross crisscross the horse will always be part of the dog the lines will move from one to the other ziggity zag The mother’s lines crisscross the daughter’s lines crisscross but they are never each other the mother and the daughter are always separate even when they are part of each other crisscross they are always lines that end and begin ziggity ziggity the horse and the dog are lines that end and begin too