'I've lost my words,' she says.
I swallow my tears, hold her close,
murmur, 'It's okay, it's okay.'
even though I know it isn't.

Losing words is not
like losing car keys, or glasses.
She won't find them tucked away
in a forgotten pocket of her purse,
or peeking out from beneath today's mail.
Seeking lost words does not compare
to the hunt for a missing sock.

Once in a while, though,
her missing words surface,
and she greets them with joy,
matches them up in pairs,
folds them into syntax,
clings to them the way the sock
had clung to a sweater.

But today, 'I've lost my words,' she says.
I swallow my tears, hold her close,
murmur, 'IIt's okay, it's okay.'

I know this isn't enough,
that I should say more, but
I just can't find the words.

Sharon Anderson has been published in many international and local anthologies, has been nominated for a Pushcart prize, and has four publications of her own poetry with a fifth to be released soon. She serves on the advisory board of the Nassau County Poet Laureate Society, the advisory board for Bards Initiative, and is a PPA host at Oceanside Library.