Her fingers were pinched, pinched as the very tips met the top
Of a blue bucket of water. Her body like a chess piece - a queen - but inverted, tipped over; The weight on the flattened surface of her small skull Appeared to crunch the neck below, Because her shoulders had shrunken, were shrugged As if she had been asked what she wanted. The boy was told to cut all the grass: each articulate weed. Even the long-limbed vines feeling their way along the garden wall. His knife whips back and forth - whoosh, whoosh, whoosh - Fixed, he doesn't choose. Even the small mango trees in the shade, Whose seeds were thrown down after the adventure of a treacherous climb Onto bowing branches; a feast, the quest of little kings. Yes, do away with those too. When did the old woman stop dreaming about the land beyond the mountains? She harvests the oil of the sunflower, the girassol, that knows to turn - Gira - to follow the sun across the sky. Let it grow until it's dry, then cut off its head, pluck and punch the seeds to a drain. Did she ever pull away from the soil to follow a sunset? My beautiful madrinha, Godmother, who laughs when I say I want to run beyond those corn stalks, So I can watch the warm waves of light turn themselves over To the dark. She thought I wanted to run to the sky. And what if I was running there? What if I wanted to?
3 Comments
Grandma dorothy Evans
8/19/2015 06:23:40 am
We were reading about your life in mozambique.....and Grandma says.....I miss her! Come home. We love your blog....grandma and old a
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Steph
2/4/2016 02:48:55 pm
Wow, just re-read this one and realized how beautifully written it is. I am so proud of you and unbelievably amazed at the courage you have had through this entire process. We all love you so much! Never settle, keep doing what you are meant to do and keep positively impacting the world you are living in. xx, steph
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