Recursive

Do not look for illumination.
Mostly there is the twitch that precedes
gesture, the button’s resistance
as you try to slide it into the too-small

aperture slashed in a finger-width
of cloth. And yes, I know it is hard to disregard
how tiny and even the stitches are,
how they ring the space

that had to be opened first
to make way for the fastening.
Don’t feel betrayed
if there is only silence

in the trees, months of near
continuous rain. Thoughts sometimes rush
to collect at the bottom of the drain pipe.
Other times they vaporize in the heat,

fall for the voices warbling discontent.
When it rains, I am oddly comforted.
The rain soaks through, asks me to give up
a little of myself. Asks me not to be so hard.

Copyright Credit: Luisa A. Igloria, "Recursive" from Ode to the Heart Smaller than a Pencil Eraser. Copyright © 2014 by Luisa A. Igloria.  Reprinted by permission of Utah State University Press.
Source: Ode to the Heart Smaller than a Pencil Eraser (Utah State University Press, 2014)