Petition by Ann Koshel van Buren I felt the strike push straight through my body until it was stopped by my spine. My body which had known its borders lost its center as the impact filled my solar plexus, pressing lungs and heart. The force sits, a sharp point on my vertebrae, a creeping aura. It dissipates through every space like a cluster bomb between my ribs. I hadn’t prepared myself for what hit me so I don’t know how to reach inside and pull it out. Even a surgeon with the most precise knife would find nothing there. No one is trained to find the emptiness in what the blow displaced. But I have strength enough for this task. The task of lifting my head as slowly as it seems the earth lifts the sun though in actuality it’s spinning. Standing still and upright, I have strength in my eyes, tongue, belly, feet and hands—strength for those with no strength— Just tell me how to lift the weight, all the weight, heavy as it is. Copyright 2023 by Ann Koshel van Buren
Ann van Buren is a writer, teacher, librarian and advocate for peace.
