I MAY NOT BE A MOTHER

"I MAY NOT BE A MOTHER" 

I may not be a mother

but I am both woman and wolf

and I know what it means

to protect the young

to defend the sacred

to listen closely

with soft ears attuned

to the voices being silenced.

I understand what it means

to care for the pack

and all the ways

that we belong to each other.

I may not be a mother

but I know the hungry ghosts

who roam the haunted halls of empire

were once held in the soft warm velvet

of a mother’s womb

and she knew deep in the fire of her belly

knew with the first cries of life

that there is no such thing

as someone else’s children.

I may not be a mother

but I stand on the shoulders

of ten thousand grandmothers

and they have taught me

how to pray and really mean it

how to sing songs of liberation

how to cast spells of protection

how to plant seeds of change

how to grieve and love

in the fierce and gentle way

that births new worlds

and breathes them to life.

Build an altar underneath the olive tree

speak the names of the dead

say a prayer for the living

open the windows and doors wide

let the pain and grief move

let it break us open

let our tears be libations on the earth

stoke the fires of our love and holy rage

and light a candle

to show us the way

and guide us

through the darkness.

 

~ Gina Puorro

Art by Lucy Campbell

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