The Mathematical Equation for Isolation
by Cat Dixon
The Mathematical Equation for Isolation​
1.
When you divide partners,
each stands alone. The remainder
must be multiplied
and both sides of the equation
should equal mother and father.
Add new unfamiliar variables,
such as the father’s match.com WV bride
and the blonde, too young, too thin
boy the mother discovered in the prairie.
2.
When you expand both sides
of the equation, one variable
must drop off the side
of the page. See how it slides
to the edge. See how it flips
on its head and slips away
before the pencil lead can scratch—
the daughter’s arms sliced
pink with broken glass.
3.
When you add x and y and subtract
license and respect, a negative
integer is the result. The final
formula is solved despite
the IV, parched mouth, dim light,
alone in a cold bed.
Cat Dixon
Cat Dixon is the author of EVA and TOO HEAVY TO CARRY (Stephen F. Austin University Press, 2016, 2014) and her chapbook, THE BOOK OF LEVINSON, was published by Finishing Line Press in 2017. She teaches creative writing at the University of Nebraska, Omaha. She has work (co-written with Trent Walters) in They Said: A Multi-Genre Anthology of Contemporary Collaborative Writing (Black Lawrence Press, 2018). Twitter: @DixonCat