Читать книгу Rise Speak Change - Girls Write Now - Страница 12

The Hat

HEATHER STRICKLAND

I write fiction, but Girls Write Now has encouraged me to explore poetry. When I read Jiselle’s submission, I decided to submit my own piece about letting go of your past. It is difficult to rise up and change, but exploring poetry has helped me do that again and again.

When the wind came strong and whipped

my hat up into the clouds, I thought perhaps

I should chase after it because it used

to be your hat

and I worried that I would miss the memory

of you arriving at my door on cold

winter nights drenched

in freezing air, that fuzz

of black on your head.

I worried that I would miss the way the faux-fur felt

against my ears, like I missed the way you wrapped

your arms around me

or the way you danced

your fingers across my skin

to keep me warm.

When the wind came strong and whipped

my hat up into the clouds, I thought perhaps

I should chase after it because it used

to be your hat,

but the chill in the air reminded me that there was a hole

in the hat, one large

enough for me to put my whole thumb through

so that sometimes when I wore it my ears ended up frozen

and I worried that I would get sick

because your hat wasn’t enough

to keep my head warm.

It was pilled, stretched out, faded,

and it was starting to smell

like sour sweat

and salt

and tears.

So when the wind came strong and whipped

my hat up into the clouds, I thought perhaps

I should chase after it because it used

to be your hat.

But instead I let it go

until it was nothing

but a black speck

disappearing

in the sky.