CAROL
Sagging creeping legs
she lotions without success
powders jowls
about a sinking neck
paints the puckered brow
she still considers kissable
and while denim spans
a broadening beam
with firmness falling fast
she speaks of inner beauty
which the outer hides
except from her of course
and a magic mirror
the years have belied.
—from Rattle #7, Summer 1997