Graphic by Sarah JensenĀ
Because I was Raped By My Father
I’ve seen old age
found its first suggestion in my face
like so many women who were women too soon,
women who were beautiful at the wrong time
flowers that yield
their sweetness only once
blooming on a hot night
empty by dawn,
eyes inflamed like arthritic joints,
bloated fruit which, from fissures,
drip juice attracting ants and flies