Springtides
Girls grow and we stain the sheets with
raspberry seeds stain the sky with a
moon stain our clothes with the scent of
jasmine stain our tongue with an oyster
stain our skin in a powdery mask stain
the tiles with red stain our teeth with
words unsaid stain our mother’s heart
with resentment stain her eyes when we
become her the boys come stumbling
in like stags without hooves and dirty
the sheets with their uncertainty dirty
our hands with the shame they pass to
us dirty the dog with all their love dirty
the day with laughter dirty the bowls
with milk dirty the vase with petals
dirty their faces with shadows dirty our
stomachs with butterflies like a child
with sticky fingers we dirty and stain
whatever we touch we do it all without
knowing
HANNAH WAGNER is an actor, poet, and artist living in Salem, Massachusetts. Her work has appeared in Soundings East, Door is a Jar, The Broke Bohemian, as well as featured as the Mass Poetry Poem of the Moment. She is a dedicated yogi and teaches fabric flower workshops in her free time.
Twyckenham Notes 