The Palmer Method

I stuck out the tip of my tongue, earnest first-grader shaping
a’s, b’s, those final t’s I still use, swirling loops and bows
meant to loosen the wrist without straying outside the lines.
Too young to be called vain, my handwriting grew distinctive
and pretty with daily practice. How this passion propelled me,
figments scribbled down by hand,
quick and cursive, on scraps of unlined paper, on the backs
of envelopes, wayward, spellbound, reckless, not the
disciplined way I bite my tongue now, sign Social Security checks.

Florence Weinberger is the author of four books of poetry: “The Invisible Telling Its Shape,” “Breathing Like a Jew,” “Carnal Fragrance” and “Sacred Graffiti.”  “The Palmer Method” was first published on Persimmon Tree, an arts website.