Summary

Part Two begins with a piece by the poet Hafiz titled “Dropping Keys.” The poem references a woman who builds cages while a wise woman drops keys “for the / beautiful / rowdy / prisoners” (43). There is then what amounts to a prologue for this section of the book, a chapter without a title. She discusses how she shaped her life through addictions and then behaviors associated with her sobriety that kept her imaginative, active, passionate inner self restrained. She could feel its presence, she says, but did not feel able to do anything to release it. It was not until she saw Abby and felt those words, “There She Is,” that she realized it was time for her to release that part of herself. Getting sober from her addictions, she says, began the process of her feeling more of herself, a process that continued in...