Five Golden Braids

Five golden braids
Falling effortlessly down her back
Each one thicker
Than the sad stubby twist
Ending barely past my bony shoulders
But when I tell her
She just laughs
And says she wishes she had my hair
I look at her and she tells me it's true
Long hair is heavy in summer
Uncontrollable in winter
Hard to wash
Impossible to brush
I point out
That her braids look like ropes
Spun by fairies in golden silky thread
I don't care
She responds that her hair
Is sometimes mean
And refuses to lay still
Or is so limp it looks murdered
Together
We look at each other
With new eyes
At first each jealous
Still envying now
But understanding
grass on the other’s fence