I Know Sad
by Lynn Strongin
It comes and go. We cannot sleep under tents, parched, starving
I don’t understand it
But it seems to have its own timing and one must accept it
In Prettyville, Missisippi, in Kabul,
I have known sad
Held its face in my hands
Cloe
Heart-shaped
Kissed its lips:
Bayou flowers bloomed & a child drowned
It begins to feel like life in an iron lung. Only, I have no circle cut ino my windpipe to let the requiem sound.
Copyright 2023 by Lynn Strongin
Born and raised in NYC, Lynn Strongin is well-known in the States. She has won a NEA grant in creative writing; has been published in five countries, been translated int Italian, German and French. A resident of Canada for forty-four years. She was recently nominated for a Woodcock award for lifelong achievement in writing in British Columbia.
Love these lines–
I have known sad
Held its face in my hands