I stand as you stood many times before

Laboring over dirty dishes in the sink

As the warm water washes over my hands

I gaze at the flowers in the window sill

and wonder if you smiled as I smile now

Smelling the sweet calla lilies brought to you by little hands

Did you sigh in relief as the dawn bubbles

removed the final crumbs from the pan,

the pan that you used to bake a cake for every year of your life.

Did your mind ever drift away…

as your hands continued their mindless task

away through the window, down the driveway

and the lane where we walked to church together every Sunday.

As I stand in the echo of your memory

drying the Just Flowers dinner plates

that served your cheese potatoes and other delights for countless family dinners

I wonder that if I complete this same task, touch this same plate

that you touched just a month before

if I stand on the same tiles worn smooth by your feet

will it reverse time, just for this moment

and allow you to be with me once again.