2020
It’s long now, my hairdresser says, it grew out
nicely.
We talk and it’s just like yesterday I was here.
I fall back into her hands. She guides my head
towards the sink and scrubs my scalp. I rise,
towel wrapped around me, sitting up like a child.
Is this how my first haircut felt? How lucky am I
to have made it this far. I don’t know the future,
but when I walk out, I am lighter. The cool air
brushes against my neck and for a sliver in time
I am no longer personally responsible
for the survival of everyone I know and love.
My hair feels clean. The weight is all gone now.
Cara Goodwin’s [photo credit: Curtis Perry] poetry has been published in Bywords, flo., and Room. In 2021, she received an Honourable Mention for the John Newlove Award and was shortlisted for Room's Annual Poetry Prize. In 2023, she earned a second Honourable Mention for the John Newlove Award, this time for her poem "Little Fish". Cara holds a BA (Hons) in Social Communications and a Professional Writing Diploma. She daylights as a speechwriter for the federal government.
the Tuesday poem is curated by rob mclennan
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