her tiny fingers clasped a diaper wipe
and pressed it to my nose
she loudly instructed for me “blow”
and waited inquisitively

she wiped my face delicately
the way mommy and daddy do it
and blotted my eyeliner
with a look of disdain

she didn’t know what to do with the ugliness
the long black streak of make-up
her eyes, wide and innocent
baffled
by imperfection

– Lindsay Diem