at the end he said No metaphors! nothing is like anything else
except he said to me before he said that, Make your hands a hammock for me. so there was one.

he said, not even the rain --he quoted the poet-- not even the rain has such small hands. so there was another.
at the end I wanted to comfort him. but what I said was, Sing to it. the Arabian proverb. when danger comes, sing to it.

except I said to him before I said that, No metaphors! no one is like anyone else. and he said, Please.
so-- at the end, I made my hands a hammock for him.

my arms the trees.


SING TO IT by AMY HEMPEL in Oprah magazine "Flash Fictions."
did not keep her line breaks although shape remains - long lines, one or two in ~stanza (I condensed more into stanza)
and she capitalized beginning of lines but I did not keep that.