what do you say

when you call to schedule a prenatal
visit and the receptionist asks
if this is your first rodeo

but you don’t know
whether to count the little phantom
girl still galloping around
under your skin

so the seconds prance by
while the lady waits for what
should be a simple answer

and the swelling silence
makes you so sick to your stomach
that you can no longer bear
to stay on the line