Bobbins Unwound

Singer, the thief, steals a dignity

as its needle eye blinks and moves

to fool the unsteady hand that attempts

to thread it.

The sway-back villain disrupts the

flow of colorful threads, tampers

with tension of the iron-latticed pedal,

forcing a frail foot into a press-halt pace.

This stitch robber stealthily unwinds

her bobbins, her skills, her thoughts—

the Maker's warrantee against theft

eluded us.