Vox Populi
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Kari Gunter-Seymour: To the Woman in Walmart Who Was Dancing to Shakira in the Pots and Pans Aisle
I’d had a shit day when I stumbled
into the whole bo-bop,
your back to me, all hips don’t lie,
hands flinging corporate America’s
flimsiest filtered warehouse air,
my own feet beginning to slide
and shuck, drawn into that vortex,
adding my own brand
of Arriba, Arriba to the mix,
our cha-cha-swoops
reminiscent of broom swipes
laid down by my Great Grandmother,
who I was told swept daily
across a series of rich men’s floors,
to keep her children fed.
What a sight, both of us raggedy
as a couple of used books,
plainly living lives we did not choose
or didn’t choose wisely—
life, a holier-than-thou hand of cards
dealt by a duplicitous deity.
Who can remember which of us
was first to grab a long-handled pan,
a wooden spoon, our need
for percussion fierce, our efforts
quickly evolving into a cautionary tale.
For the record, I don’t give a hot damn
about what the manager said.
I was planning to buy a saucepan anyway.
~~~~~
Copyright 2025 Kari Gunter-Seymour. First published in the Southern Poetry Anthology, Volume III: Contemporary Appalachia, 2nd Edition. Included in Vox Populi by permission of the author.
Kari Gunter-Seymour is the Poet Laureate of Ohio and an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship recipient. Her poetry collections include Dirt Songs (EastOver Press, 2024). Her work has been featured in The New York Times, World Literature Today, American Book Review, Poem-a-Day and Katie Curic’s Wake Up Call.
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What a carefree poem! Love.
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Yes. I love the way this poem embraces freedom.
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Hot damn, in spite of drudgery and doomscrolls unrolling everywhere, this poem had me sashaying across the kitchen with a favorite broom, in a day that started in utter gloom.
Stomp your foot, Ms. Gunter-Seymour. Bang pots across the big boxed store.
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Bang the pots loudly!!!!!
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Wonderful poem to begin the poetry ay!!
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Ain’t it so?
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This is Gunter-Seymour at her best and most joyful. I was about to join, but my hips wouldn’t let me. Terrific poem!
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Isn’t it!!!
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…me too!
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Sorely needed that dance.
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I was right there with you, dancing and grabbing spoons and pans. Great poem to begin the day.
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Isn’t it, though. Dancing with joy is a wonderful response to the oppression of daily life in America.
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Thanks for the spontaneous joy. I want that spoon and saucepan.
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Yes, the spoon!!!!
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Love it! The mix of humor and pathos– and toughness on the speaker’s part!
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Isn’t Kari great? Her poetry is rooted in everyday life in a way that’s admirable.
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Wonderful poem! Wonderful start to my day!
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A wonderful start to my day too.
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