Susan Bennerstrom, Studio Fetsi (oil on canvas)
when i am wondering
why mothers die
all the time the moon
above us erasing
her body like a mistake
perhaps she is thankful
for the mortality
of her own creviced skin
my mother swallows the seeds
of the last pear
she will ever eat
before i am even born
and her body grew
its evil in fruits so bright
i could only sneak
what i imagine to be
their taste
into my sinless mouth