Polyester Never Dies
These sheets wrapped my children’s dreams.
Pink and yellow ruffles under chins,
stars warded off the boogeyman.
They’ve been moved three times to second homes.
Now, they share summer closet shelves
with dormant daddy long-legs.
In dim light on this gray wet day,
I rub my hand over them.
Attempt to ignite the crackle of static-cling,
to jolt back to young motherhood
when my legs were climbing-trees,
my arms, swings,
my chest, their pillow.
With flashlights under sheet tents,
we imagined moon landings.
I will make them crackle again.
These sheets wait for their children
to take their first moonwalk with me.
Wrinkle free, they are permanent-press,
unlike me.
Daddy long-legs awakens,
strides over my still hand, slips under a fold.
I wonder how old he is.
If, like polyester, he will never die?
If I’m not here, tell your children
your mother taught you how to fly.
…..
This poem is from the book Suddenly Deciduous by Dee Slavutin (Finishing Line Press), and can be found at https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/suddenly-deciduous-by-dee-slavutin/
Dee Slavutin has written two full-length poetry collections: Wingspan: Search for Food and Suddenly Deciduous, which will be published in 2025 by Finishing Line Press. Dee has a Master’s degree in Literature (McGill University) and an MBA in Finance (Fordham University). At McGill, Dee founded Cyan Line, a poetry magazine and served as its editor while completing her degree. She was a 2024 grant recipient from the Ruth Wisse Foundation as a finalist for her poem “Aging in Haiku.” She curated the East Hampton Poetry Marathon for five years, a summer series of poetry readings. She was the president of a boutique financial services company for thirty plus years. Dee lives in East Hampton and New York City with her husband Lee. They have two grown children.
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