"I have fulfilled my duty"

she said, and crossed

her hands to assert

her place among

the saints.

That’s what life was

to her: A service full

of humdrum tasks

she had to accomplish.

No wonder her children felt

like cheap porcelain dishes

left on the rack to dry.

"The Final Statement" belongs to the collection Checking the Exits, a chapbook that examines the themes of death, old age and terminal disease.