(for Mom, Dorothy/Darlene Haag, on her 93rd birthday)

No matter how tired I find myself on a Momday,
I follow her into Curves, take up a position
on an apparatus designed to exercise

a specific body part. She’s already ahead of me,
settling her small frame into the big chair,
grasping the handles as though she’s

about to steer the thing through deep space,
which she’d dearly love to do. And who says
she can’t, this 93-year-old once glued

to every “Star Trek” episode? She’s spent
decades exploring strange, new worlds,
seeking out new lifeforms and civilizations,

and she continues to boldly go where …
well, wherever she wants to go.
May she live long and prosper.