Recitation

for Karen

They said we
all had to wear
red blouses
and strange
congruence   I thought
our two were
a different shade
than all the
others   not an
orange-y red not
a middle of the
road red
crepe but a
deep dark
blood red
as if the
cloth had
some how been
super-saturated
as if it had
absorbed the
essence of
redness like
a drowning person
sucks in
air.

You know I felt
relief when I
saw you wearing
that shade red
it was like
some kind of
a flag
for a republic
not yet
founded or
maybe it was
just a blouse
with a label
in it
and the only
difference was
you.