Charlene
She comes in once a month for a shot
to keep the mania from taking over,
but a smile always on her face,
gratitude always on her lips. She folds
laundry at the Blue Moon Care Center,
afraid her shakes will get too bad
to work. She brought
her granddaughter to see me
for hair loss. It was from the cornrows.
She said she couldn’t give up her heritage.
No, don’t ever do that, I told her,
just decrease the tension by changing
the location. She peered skeptically
at my limp tresses, knew I got that advice
from a book. She rotated the braids,
fixed the problem. Trusted me despite
years of lies from people who look like me.
She stayed in this land of cornfields,
she said, because people were good here.
As good as anywhere.
Published in The Healing Muse, Vol 23 No 1. Fall 2023
Lynette Lamp 