For Sylvia

Fixed and firm
you pull out frames
slice wax caps
and dip into combs
of liquid gold.

You tug red cashmere
over platinum waves
then smooth
a tight, white skirt.

You dig delightfully
up nasal pathways
dragging back gobs
to roll and stick.
You paint.
You read.
You type.

You grasp
a Sheaffer
fountain pen
and write.

But what
is the way out
of the mind?

You stuff wet rags
into the gap
under the door
and press tape
tape tightly
along the frame.

Where was
the way out?
It was at
your fingertips.

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Lara Dolphin is a recovering attorney, novice nurse, and full-time mother of four amazing kids; she is exhausted and elated most of the time.