Hot Pot Magazine

By Andrea Potos

Though after five months of chemo, her hair
was only thinned a little,
she had a free wig coming,
the nurse told us. We visited the room
of floor-to-ceiling shelves: mannequin
heads, and baskets of scarves and wraps.
Mom settled in; we giggled, comparing
thoughts as she smiled for my cellphone camera:
dark auburn with short curls, layered
brunette waves, medium shaggy, sideways parts;
one wig with streaks of silver like surprise hints of lightning.
In no rush to agree on the one and decide,
we wanted to stay in that brief clearing
of complimentary joy. We never even considered
choosing anything other than hope.


Previously published in Marrow of Summer (Kelsay Books)

Andrea Potos is the author of several collections of poetry, most recently Her Joy Becomes (Fernwood Press), Marrow of Summer (Kelsay Books), and Mothershell (Kelsay Books).  Her poems can be found widely in print and online, most recently in One Art, Braided Way, The Sun, Potomac Review, and How to Love the World:  Poems of Gratitude and Hope (Storey Publishing).