He that showed up at your door
was a cousin, twice-removed,
in the neighborhood,
so he decided to look you up.
And how much he reminds you
of your Uncle Frank,
your first cousin, Albert,
even the great-grandfather
you only know from photos.
There’s something about family,
how one generation loses the mouth
but they keep the nose,
or welcomes a new eye shade
but hold onto the head shape.
And then, of course genealogy reverses.
The nose is abandoned
and the mouth returns.
The eyes revert and heads
grow rounder or squarer
depending on their starting point.
Your cousin, twice-removed,
says that you’re a dead ringer
for his late mother.
So, it’s not just you
and the guy at your door
making connection, swapping notes.
It’s as if everybody in the family
is catching up with everybody else.
“Haven’t see you in such a long time,”
is the general consensus.
“Except,” they add,” for the last time
I looked in the mirror.”
