(On April 17, 1979, six years after Roe v Wade, a choice is made that
never would have been possible before 1973 in the United States of America.)
by Susan Fox
This is the hoarfrosted moment – bare and sinister;
it chokes a freckled young woman,
dark-haired and beautiful with child.
The day is ugly with torment
and a certain disposable mentality
seeps through the cracks of the sidewalk,
recalling days without nights.
The air is blue gray
as she pulls another drag of happiness,
walking with a bitter finality
to a certain and undisclosed destination.
Her mother is ashamed.
She would whitewash the moment,
send her to a man in a white coat.
The knife is sharp and indifferent.
And the roommate?
She would send the moment away,
put it on a speeding train to infinity,
never say the one word that should be spoken:
“Stop.”
 |
| Gnawing on the Bone |
We are all such cowards;
unwilling to touch the guilt –
an ugly thing gnawing on our bones.
And the boy?
Well, he is concerned
with economics
and “social responsibility.”
The cash register rings loudly
in the icy silence
while his son is delivered
into a pool of blood.
