A Response to Chemotherapy

The release date is just one day,
but the record is forever.
Bruce Springsteen

a group of friends gathered early Sunday afternoon—
ate brownies, some chips and dip, a platter of veggies
and a bowl of sugared nuts——downstairs Peg
sat in an overstuffed chair holding a limp teddy bear—
people drifted downstairs, chatted and waited—
a wooden chair from the upstairs kitchen became
a barber's chair, Peg wrapped herself in
a purple plastic smock and waited—
waited for the clippers and the first swipe
through her short graying hair, three people took turns
— they left a spiked Mohawk cut on top
one person brought purple spray to color
the fringed edges, another friend
took photos to record the day




April National Poetry Day
Prompt: a fourteen line poem