Appendix

An amber-colored vial, stoppered.
I couldn’t tell what floated in the water—
some tendrils, some gauzy substance.
Mother said the doctors let her have it.
Meaning, that bit of her own excised flesh,
that little pocket meant to catch stray bits
until it nearly burst: so much smaller than a heart,
that little pocket meant to catch stray bits:
meaning, that bit of her own excised flesh.
Mother said the doctors let her have it:
some tendrils, some gauzy substance.
I couldn’t tell what floated in the water.
An amber-colored vial, stoppered.