Paul grew a beard.
He did not recognize himself in the mirror.
His mirrored hand moved
to scratch the beard on his left side.
His real arm remained at his right thigh.
His blood pressure rose four points.
His mirror presented spread peacock tail feathers
behind his head.
Paul turned around to see the watercolor poster
of shorebirds adjacent to the sandy tide.
He spoke indirectly to his mirror image
and it kept quiet listening.
His murmured thought caused his mirror image
to bend its ear toward him.
copyright © 2022 Kenneth P. Gurney
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