If you’re a woman of a certain age
maybe you shouldn’t be standing in the middle
of a busy intersection tossing your hat in the air
maybe you should be home raising kids or knitting
maybe you’re at a crossroads in life
and aren’t so much celebrating
as serving things up to the fates
gravity has its way, of course,
and the cap lands on the frozen ground
also, why is the van going in reverse
when it should be going forward
and who is driving that thing anyway
ohhhhh, Justice Aliiiito!
it is almost as if he is aiming
there is nothing to do but muster your dignity
no one is going to commission a bronze statue
of you picking your belongings off the pavement
so you best get on with it and head to the office
wet hat dripping limply from your hand
there is work to be done
and, Girl, this time you’re all alone
[Originally published in Shot Glass Journal, Issue #38, September 2022]
A native of Pennsylvania, Lara Dolphin is an attorney, nurse, wife and mom of four amazing kids. Her chapbooks include In Search Of The Wondrous Whole, Chronicle Of Lost Moments, and At Last A Valley forthcoming from Blue Jade Press.