Cara mia They were identical twins, Mia and Cara, And they spent their childhood being mistaken for each other. They laughed about it, though, » And Mia ran with the idea. ry They pretended to be each other, Confusing their friends and family. They talked and dressed and acted the same, And laughed together at people’s shock. And then they grew up, And they stopped playing those tricks, But they would always be able to And Mia took comfort in that. It felt like a failsafe, She was always the adventurous one. No one was surprised when she became an astronau oval She left on their 29" birthday. \V Cara gave her a medal, made by her chi And said, “Come back soon, sorella.” Mia smiled through her tears.Mia was gone for one year. Twenty years passed. Cara sat, and aged. Mia came back only one year older. She was 30. Cara was 49. Mia knew before she saw her but it still hurt. It was time dilation, they explained. The paradox of the twins, they said. It did not dispel Cara’s grey hair, Or her aging skin, or tired eyes. For the first time in years, Mia cried.