I've got the whole world in my hands

for Sara, Maggie and Sally

A couple of pieces of mail that were shoved through the door slot today looked as if they'd been chewed. I swear I saw teeth marks on the corners, and one was ripped.  Something had chewed off the corner of the confidential report of Sophie's conservatorship, submitted to the judge downtown. I sat on my bed and read the recommended seven powers that The Husband and I would "gain" upon the judge's decision later this month. Los Angeles is beautiful today, like most other days and despite yesterday's mayhem in Santa Monica, the sky is still blue and the bougainvillea riotously pink. The breezes are blowing even as sirens wail.  The Limited Conservatorship law recognizes the important principle that persons with developmental disabilities should not, on the basis of their disability alone, be deemed  unable to exercise certain rights, I read. The sky is still blue and the bougainvillea pink. It is not likely that she could respond appropriately to an emergency, such as an earthquake or a fire. Breezes blow and sirens wail.  I also received a copy of my poet friend Sara's new collection called Lake Effect, and opened to the world has broken blazing from a poem titled Tree of Heaven.  In another envelope was a gift for Sophie from Sally and Maggie of Maggie World, a beautiful necklace that spelled out DREAM. Again, given her significant deficits in communication, self-care and self-safety, the Regional Center recommends granting the power to consent or withhold consent to marry. If I were more beast than human, I'd chew the rest of it up, read only the poetry and swallow, a dream around my neck.