image from Hikaya series by Susan Zayed
Nothing’s Lost That Can’t Be Found
Paul Bluestein
Her hands hold the guitar tentatively, like a new mother, while her fingers struggle with half-remembered folk-songs first learned 50 years ago during her sexual revolution, her war for independence. These are hands that moved on from bar chords to carry signs at sit-ins, wear a wedding ring, write a thesis, and raise children and a husband. Hands that tried to hold tight to the life she imagined, but that was snatched away by a creeping thief while she was busy helping with homework and making ends meet whenever there was more month at the end of the money. Now, as she picks at the strings, the guitar begins to sing again, to find its long-stilled voice as it all comes back to her.
Paul Bluestein is an obstetrician (done practicing) and blues guitar player (still practicing). His first poetry collection, Time Passages, was published in 2020 by Silver Bow Publishing.