Haircut

A kaleidoscope of brown
clipped lines—giant
eyelashes strewn on the tile
floor, the aftermath
of precision, one inch
cohorts of keratinized cells,

death,

the curls that
never grew. The thick,
primitive blanket of dead cells seemingly so

alive,

as one body, smiles

awkwardly

meeting the sheen of
mirrors as

the bristles glide through the smooth
labyrinth, the vivacious
sensation, the pieces excommunicated

painlessly,

fluttering with

life,

the death of

death.

Nancy Barnard holds a BA in Art and English and an MA in English from William Carey University in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. She teaches IRWD, English, and literature at Midland College in Midland, Texas. Nancy enjoys oil painting and loves writing poetry, fiction, and scholarly articles on a variety of topics. She has not yet published her poetry and is currently working on a novel.