Second Nature to Me Now

As if she is brand new,

I touch the soft folds,

remark at the marks,

notice the skin and

its propensity to

count time with lines.

There is no preparation

for this reflection,

this time spent

considering

the countenance.

They call it pause

for good reason,

as these mirrored moments

will attest,

for it is here I pause

— and pause again —

as if she is brand new.

©Jen Payne. Image: Standing Odalisque Reflected in a Mirror, Henri Matisse. This poem appears in the Guilford Poets Guild 20th Anniversary Anthology, Our Changing Environment. To purchase your copy, click here.