Nana’s Shower Cap Brooch

i.
Mum gives Nana a shower cap
disco ball sequins sewn on top
aqua brooch pinned above the frilly trim.
‘I got one for my birthday too.’ 
Nana’s laughter makes the diamantes dance.
 
ii.
The music stops and I’m not ready.
A nurse tells us to collect Nana’s things.
Presents I once gave her
photos
            stories
                        Chanukah cards
                                                      drawings
returned to sender. Among the objects
is Nana’s shower cap, still full of laughter
and glitter-memory.
 
iii.
The Synagogue walls are woven with prayers
and men’s shushing. A layer of tradition
from Nana’s time. ‘Lovely brooch,
was it your grandmother’s?’
One of the men shushes the women’s section.
My brooch winks light into crystal chandeliers.
I smile and whisper after the Rabbi’s blessing
that it came from Nana’s shower cap.