For Long

Oedipus, eyeless, turns to Creon. "Take care of them," he says,
meaning his daughters. "Creon, take care of them."

-- Sophocles, Oedipus the King

--

Today, I logged an hour in the costume shop. With a seam ripper,
I plucked out ancient threads on a purple silk dress, removing the lace.
The fabric disintegrated on my fingers.

I asked Bryan how old he thought the dress was. He took the neck and
examined the stitch. "Turn of the century, I think," he said.

Once the lace was all plucked off, I turned to an old blouse,
one with coffee stains from Victorian England. I took off the hooks.
The seam ripper was a shark, with a bulging bubble of blood on the head,
zoning under the flaky silk in my sad hands. So it goes.

--

We will have class in a bar tonight.