From the collection And Don’t Come Back, 2021.
Gift from a Window Cleaner
Two days ago she took hold of the squeegee
swiped a checkerboard of soapy cleanser
straight from the bucket across the plate glass window
rows and columns in a swipe turn the wrist
sling off the excess kind of motion
smooth and sure. She did all of this two days ago.
Today
I sit with my shoulder to the window
In the streaks of sunshine and shadow laid across my table
I see the layout of the puzzle she left behind for me
the swipes and slings rayed out in front of me
outlining boxes in a grid
Thank you for the clues.
I fill in my answers.
8/6/20
Claudia McGill Writes Poetry, Did You Know That? 
This is beautifully observed. I can really picture the light coming in through the window and the patterns it creates on surfaces. I have been deep cleaning my house this week so can testify that we can rarely accomplish pristine levels of sparkling cleanliness.
Thank you. Windows are so hard to make perfectly transparent, and they don’t stay that way. I like how the sun coming through a window finds the hidden patterns.
I can see the pattern on the table top as the sun slants through the glass… Makes me want to do a crossword puzzle!
Yes, it is funny how associations come up from the strangest things and then…