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Chutes and Ladders
for MC

Angie Minkin

Let’s say I listened closely.
Ignored her jokes. Heard her

pain. That I understood time
was up. Knew her children

would be orphaned. That I
didn’t obsess about money,

inconvenience, the calendar,
the spinner’s arrow.

Let’s say I slashed open
the night to catch that flight

to Chicago. That I clung
to my friend. Held her children

close. That I cradled her elbow
as she paced the black and yellow

squares of the hospital hallway.
Or let’s say she raved,

and I finally understood.
That I devoured the distance,

the gaps that came with living
far away. That come with life

and moves. When our kids were little
and played Chutes and Ladders,

they begged for do-overs. Countless
do-overs, do-overs, do-overs. Do.

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