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EVIDENCE
By Vivian Vande Velde
If the coach turned back into a pumpkin
And the coachman into a rat
And the footmen into mice,
One can only wonder
Why the glass slippers alone remained untouched by magic’s ebbing tide.
Obviously a set-up.
But by whom?
The fairy godmother’s ability
Didn’t extend beyond midnight.
And where would a cinder girl
Have ever gotten shoes like that?
Could they possibly have been a secret gift
From the stepmother,
Eager to get her out of the house,
Tired of her unrelenting goodness,
And beauty,
And cheerfulness
(not to mention all that singing)?
