You gave:
a book. a doll. a box full of string
for making jewelry.
I searched behind the pillows.
the curtains. beneath cushions and chairs
until I found them.
You said:
"I know what you're looking at."
We gave:
angel food cake. wine.
peanut butter cookies with too much salt.
we threw handfuls of confetti
that landed in your hair and on the doorstep.
We said:
"I'm sorry."
She gave:
small toys, lined up on the piano
as I played. a flower. a thimble. a green
plastic dinosaur. pictures of places
I'd always wanted to visit.
She said:
"I don't know where to go anymore."
We asked for:
a smile. a tear. an evening spent
listening to old music. a moment of
stunning realism during
a conversation at the dinner table.
You gave:
silence. a stoic expression.
tabletops covered in origami cranes.
A mouthful of teeth for gnashing;
images of God from a distance.