Waiting, watching the clock, It's four o'clock-it's got to stop
Tell him-take no more
She practices her speech, as he opens the door, She rolls over
Pearl Jam


Note cards.
The ones she used when she practiced for
public speaking class

Looking in her bathroom mirror
Remembering to glance down,
only for a minute.
Keep eye contact,
talk neither too fast nor
too slowly

Be firm, do not hesitate

She repeats these words to herself
every night as she waits for him to come home
every night for a month

Eventually, she tells herself
she is sure to work up the nerve
Preparation is the key, her teacher had said.
She still has the notebook as proof.

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