By Her Laboratory

.In a chair
seeing
Egairia
                        Pahn smiles

She
encouraged
             smiles back

Saying

“I wrote a poem
                         See what you think”

Happy                     

that she cares
                   he takes her words
behind the university                                            
                                       to read them on the lawn

…

There are five lines

                              The first speaks
                                                    of matching
 
                           The second is
                                                in Hawaiian
                                             No ka oi 
                                                       (nothing better)
 
                                     The third is a series
                                                of elements 
                                            Na K O..

                                      The fourth is a list   
                                                of syllables

                                                in English
 
                                       The last is about       
                                                        balancing wine

…

When she returns
                           for his opinion

he tells her

he likes her metaphor
of balancing wine
and balancing
In life

But she interrupts
                                 to say
 
                   it was inspired
by the family
who’s young son was killed
in Italy     his organs
donated
                           how she admired
                                              their determination

And in the mix
of tissue
elements
      and languages

(not understanding)

he struggles to remember

                                                her lines

.

.