Shirley Kaufman

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Mortality

We don't think we're waiting for the end,
but the end is waiting.
The mind cultivates its flaws
like an oyster, wary of tides.
You and I are not like the effortless ones
who are there already.
Not anything like them.
When the circuit breaks
we grope for the matches and candles.
After each night we wake
without detachment,
still needing each other.

© 1995 by Shirley Kaufman

Shirley Kaufman was born in Seattle, lived in San Francisco, and now lives in Jerusalem. Her latest book is Rivers of Salt (Copper Canyon Press, Port Townsend, 1993).