The Girl in the Red Hajab

MICHIGAN AVENUE POETRY WINNER 2012

She wore it like a forest
(Knowing it well
After her mother
And so it kept her safe
Dry, full, and warm
Where it would leave
Most of you otherwise)
Hiding within the cover of its brush
Capering from tree to tree
Appearing and then un-appearing
Not much you can offer her
That she can not find within it
And so she giggles
At your searching eyes
Your lending hand
        Its tawny flesh
She wore it
Like a crescent moon
On the other side
Of the sky
That you can not
Quite put your finger on
        Wrap your head around
                Be enlightened by...

Like a nameless
Un-introduced friend
Whose hand she holds...
Cryptically--
        a friend? a sibling? a lover?
Like the sweet scent of cinnamon
Seeping from a stranger's window
        Fading from memory–yearning remains
                Clear as water, elusive as rain

Like a leveled labyrinth
        An unspoken riddle
Made to obscure a truth
You were never meant to touch