PenWomanShip

when I was young
they called me Goldilocks
I didn't have blond hair
I never invaded anybody's house
let alone a bear's
not in a million years
would I eat someone else's porridge
break their chair
sleep in their bed

my hair was dark
like dirt that is dug up in springtime
I wished for gold hair
all the town kids who got good grades
had hair that shone like sunshine

I had one strand of straw-colored hair
on the left side
if I lifted layers of brown
I could find it

last year when I visited my mother
her hair a winter landscape
mine with slivers of silver
she asked if I still had that streak of gold

together
we went to the bathroom mirror
probing till we found it

when I was young
they called me Goldilocks
dreaming for gold

hoping for good grades
wisdom to keep my legs crossed
until I married
one hidden strand wasn't enough