This Woman in the Sewing Room

This Woman in the Sewing Room

This woman in the sewing room
can embroider dresses
with her eyes closed. A thimble
on each finger, a scientific
experiment resting on the edge
of little girls' dresses. Women
in the neighborhood flock
and line up, a heedless
intricate design outside
her door. She works hours,
days at a time, looking only
as she remembers a morning spill,
a fossil of vinegar on the counter,
for proof she's alive.