The Beauty College Student

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The Beauty College Student
By Robert H. Nunnally, Jr.

She cuts well,
Smooth, straight runs of the shears--
It's all in the smooth, straight lines,
it's all in knowing which number shears to use.

"People imagine we are just cutting hair,"
he instructs, a nasal rasp in his voice,
as if his vocal chords need shaving.

"People, we are not just cutting hair,
we're defining personal fashion!".
He loves to make bold statements, to cut
unruly hair and right fashion wrongs.

He pauses, Shakespearean, mid-sentence,
looking for royalty in the crowd of students,
but his groundlings are fingering the combs,
ready to stop talking hair and start cutting it;
except, she is watching him,
her eyes looking above him,
measuring his scalp, ready to cut, mold and
slice away.

He circles her, as she works,
ready to pounce like a well-groomed panther,
she's trimming away at his resistance.
She cuts well, a smooth, straight run of the shears,
her mouth fixed in smooth, straight lines,
it's all in knowing where to cut,
which shears to use.