Toi Derricotte: In Knowledge of Young Boys
i knew you when your connections
belonged only to yourself,
when you had no history
to hook on to
Anna Hennessey: I saw my baby as a river flowing through me, and gave birth
I imagined a large river cascading down a mountain through my own body. The image was strong in my mind and my body was calm.
Michael Simms: Meconium
it is sacred, the way
soil clinging to the seed
of a new shoot
pushing out of the earth
is sacred
Video: A Mind Sang
In the last moments before childbirth, a mother sees how similar her life and her child’s life will be.
Adrie Kusserow: Fontanelegy
I felt the manic bird
of her heartbeat flutter into my throat,
her unfinished nerves sparking and misfiring,
the tiny wings of her blood rushing in and out.
Sarah Sunshine Manning: Decolonizing Birth — Women Take Back Their Power as Life-Givers
“We’re just beginning to bring those Indigenous perspectives forward again.” . Zintkala Mahpiya Win Blackowl didn’t plan to have her sixth baby in a tipi on the windy plains of … Continue reading
Kate Daniels — The Addict’s Mother: Birth Story
She wasn’t watching when they cut him Out. C-section, you know. Green drape Obscuring the mound of ripened belly They extracted him from. He spilled Out squalling, already starving. Still … Continue reading
Elizabeth Romero: Birth
The next day she got up because of a dream. The railroad cars were loaded with pale lumber in the sun and all around were green-gold trees. On the table … Continue reading
Vox Populi 