You believe you only have to look
in one more place, and you’ll find it,
______though it’s been 20 years.
The Swiss-made Chopard necklace
your mother-in-law left you.
You picture it crouched in no-man’s-land
behind the dresser drawers…
_____glide them from their slides.
Nothing.
You keep going back
to another mind’s eye scenario,
_____the one you hate to admit is true:
gold chain with its half carat
unable to dance in a dark, suit-jacket pocket,
the jacket sagging,
skirt lopsided on its hanger.
_____Those pockets, jewelry hiding spots
after your home was robbed,
after business casual sweaters and slacks.
_____You imagine a red-haired woman,
proud of her Goodwill find,
though linebacker shoulders
went out with three-martini lunches,
_____and then, and then! A bonus!
Assuming, JC Penney costume jewelry,
before noticing its weight
and the diamond flashing fire on her wall.
_____You hope she’s wearing it
with the jacket and no blouse—
or a low-cut one, feeling like Joan Collins
in Dynasty: power-padded and blingy.
_____Or maybe has sold the necklace
to buy a blue linen sofa, rug, chair to match,
a fleece throw she cozies under to read.
_____Or, not grasping its truth,
has given the bauble to her little niece,
who dropped it in dead leaves.
_____And your heart winces again
for the woman who believed in you.
_____Who may have convinced her son
you were worth keeping.
Photo by Artem Beliaikin, used and adapted under CC.
