…..
Even In Her Rage
she stands
feet firmly planted
limbs taut
hands clenched
and lets it rip
stomps
so hard
the lampshades shake
tears hurl and flow
like a high-alert Texas rainstorm
she is bright red
shrieks so loud
the neighbors
peek out their windows
in concern
her face contorted
eyes wet with rage
at the unfairness of it all
the shrieks
like a poisonous gas
coming up and out from the depths
of her wracked little body
she carries on
until the world over hears
her cry
until mothers on the other side
of the planet
look up
from chopping their vegetables
heads cocked
attuned like pups
because they too know
this cry
my daughter
collapses on the hard floor
limp and soggy
then sleeps the sleep
of a protected child
knowing
that even in her rage
she is loved
……
This poem is from the chapbook Living with the Spare On by Kimberly Reiss (Finishing Line Press), and can be found at https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/living-with-the-spare-on-by-kimberly-reiss/
Ms. Reiss is a poet, memoirist, lover of flash fiction, performer, and licensed psychotherapist. Her work has been published in Roi Fainéant Press, Boats Against the Current, Open Door Magazine, Penumbra: Literary and Art Journal and others. Ms. Reiss is the creator of Motherhood Selfhood, a workshop series and forthcoming book. She has completed her second chapbook, Dearest Tits, and is currently working on a memoir, Fall to Grace.
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