MY MOTHER’S SCRIBE
Half-moon above the table
Her face by candlelight
Her upper lip twitches
My right leg flutters
In All Things Be Men
The school motto on my cap
Parker fountain pen
Gold-plated nib
Waterman's ink
Eggshell paper
My blue-black fingers
Pilot her fervent verses
To Prime Ministers of the World
A moth at a candle's edge
Flame flickering
Only calligraphy at her robe's hem
by Rafiq Kathwari