Eleven Seconds

She’s still the person

she once was, but not fully – 

older now, more frail,

she gets flustered easily 

and finds forms overwhelming.

She’s not used to living by herself.

Moving cautiously, slowly, 

she takes forever

to get to the phone.

I call her just before I go away,

to say goodbye and make sure she’s OK. 

Hanging up, I notice the call

lasted eleven seconds

and I think that this may just have been

the best eleven seconds

in both of our weeks.

I marvel at how the mere sound

of my voice could have meant

so much to her. 

And I wonder at how I swore I could hear

the smile on her face

at the end of the line.

Joshua Seigal