without a seat beltA Poem by Marie AnzaloneShe
said, being poor, for
the woman, is
exactly like depression. like
shame. like Tolkien’s too
little butter spread over
too much bread. it is bargaining
for your daily goods
from people who think you
are lying.
about
everything.
It
is not intangible. all
5 senses are involved
in this conspiracy to
hijack your spirit and
subvert your will.
being
poor. it
looks like the floor you washed
without soap. the
way you are paying
for your coffee with
quarters.
it
sounds like the way
you lose your temper when
someone asks you to
just keep giving a
little bit more, just add
another f*****g hour
of work to
your day.
It
is the feeling of
menstrual blood running
down your leg when
you stand up because
your period came before your
paycheck did.
It
is getting
abnormal results on
your PAP test and knowing
you will not go
back for the follow-up because
you could never cover
the treatment and
you have already
asked too much from
your family.
it
is the smell of the glue you
use to repair thrift store boots
for the 3rd, 5th, 8th time. it
is stale urine and
that sense of unease, it
is the meat that is probably
a little expired but
your body is craving the
protein.
it
is the taste of fast food breakfasts
and bread and
watered down weak tea;
it is savoring the sweetness
of a banana, it
is that one time this
month you had real
chocolate.
it
is being left behind while
everyone else is out celebrating,
it is the sense of
isolation so deep you
convince yourself this
was all you were ever made
for.
it
is being so caught up in
the act of surviving that
you are not sure if
living will ever show its
face, again. it is the devastation
of every rejection
letter after every interview
and wondering
how
much longer you
can hold on to the madly
spinning tilt
a whirl that you boarded
without knowing- that
only after the ride started,
did you notice, there
is no seat belt.
© 2017 Marie AnzaloneAuthor's Note
|
Stats
148 Views
Added on November 2, 2017 Last Updated on November 2, 2017 AuthorMarie AnzaloneXecaracoj, Quetzaltenango, GuatemalaAboutBilingual (English and Spanish) poet, essayist, novelist, grant writer, editor, and technical writer working in Central America. "A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to ta.. more..Writing
|