The poem wouldn’t come
until I got the text
result is negative
all day, the words
had been like choppy breath
I couldn’t catch them
I couldn’t slow them down
as I read her a bedtime story with my mask on
as she asked if she could hug me
as she asked if it was okay to be scared
I tried to wrap words around it all
but they darted away
as if they were as scared as me
not wanting to be given a part
in the wrong ending
until I got the text
result is negative
which tilted the world
back in place
and let the poem
roll right out.