The Eye of a Needle

She tells me the boys at school are rude
they tell her about their 20 inch members
she is thirteen and they are upperclassmen
she tells me one unzipped his fly
asked her to get in

I comment on the impossibility of the suggestion
a 5’7 girl fitting through a six inch zipper
because humor relieves tension
because I can’t believe someone would say that to her
because I’m not used to feeling the urge to castrate teenagers

She says it like it’s nothing
a minor annoyance
a mosquito bite
a creaky door
a parking ticket

The conversation moves on
she’s telling me about the rabbits she raises for the county fair
I’m trying hard
to remind myself
what Jesus said about rich men going to heaven
trying to remind myself
if camels can fit through the eye of a needle
maybe pervy teenagers can fit too.