ZoeBee

Jessie had a hushed abortion, 1972
And though she didn't share it, all of the townspeople knew
She crept on down an alley, date silently arranged
And walked out in the same plaid dress, though something else had changed

Infant
You will want to buy her pink baby clothes
And then you will want to buy her blue baby clothes because the pink guarantees less playtime focusing on fine motor skills

When my son asks for a BB gun for squirrels, I will hand him wildflower seeds and tell him that he will take care of the next baby bird that crashes into our window.

I wait for a day where I am not seen as prey
I stitch this message into fuzz that wafts from my warren
Tuft floats away into the ether
A bird calls me back to the raccoon sniffing at my front door
Pointing fat grey fingers, barging in

Little Red's basket lay discarded on the ground. Her bonnet twenty paces further, a slashing of cloak twenty paces after that. It was only natural that the village would pronounce her dead. Another year, another girl lost.

To the man serving me hot chocolate while my dad is in the bathroom
I tip the jar of crusty pennies into his coffee and watch them sink to the bottom
As crumbs and pockets of cream rise from the depths to break the surface