SEWING LESSONS

How many evenings, dishes done, they sit in the parlor

stitching. How many times the needle kisses her finger,

red beading the muslin fabric. How she mimics

the angle of Mémé’s needle, tautness of her thread.

How’s she’s getting used to the thimble. The way it’s clumsy—

stops feeling. How she has plans for each remnant,

ribbon, embroidery floss in the basket. How to make

a knot that won’t pull through the sheerest cloth.

Cindy Veach’s poems have appeared in The Journal, Michigan Quarterly Review, Poet Lore, North American Review, Chicago Review, Prairie Schooner, Carolina Quarterly, Sou’wester, and others.