3 Poems — Rescued, Before They Are Lost
The following are three poems previously published by Yellow Chair Review, who has since erased all of the poetry from their site and otherwise disbanded without any communication with its poets and reviewers. Because they are previously published, finding new homes for them would be quite difficult so I am self-publishing them. The first two, “To the ‘Bad’ Mothers” and “You Say You Want a Revolution” were published on the website. The third, “A Final Kiss” is published in their print anthology A Prince Tribute: Only Wanted One Time to See You Laughing, which is still available for purchase and which features cover art by me as well.
To the “Bad” Mothers
By Aaminah Shakur
To the “bad” mothers
Mothers who are told plenty often
all the ways they ruined
everyone’s lives
To the mamas
who kept their kids
worked double shifts
set boundaries
couldn’t buy name brands
didn’t get an X-box
to be told they are bitches
To the moms who had
their kids taken from them
maybe it was the best thing
maybe it was a racist system
set up against them
maybe they were taken away
by drugs or prison
but they tried, they really tried
and every day they think
of what they lost
and hope their child is
better off
To the mothers who gave up
sent their kids away
at birth or after they tried
their very best
either way worried they
would fuck their kids up
more than abandoning them would
who believed someone better
would pick up the pieces
and give everything they
could not
To the “evil” stepmothers
and adoptive mothers
and foster mothers
who will never be enough
because they aren’t
“real”
and can’t explain why the real ones
can’t be there instead
To all the bad mothers out there
who ruin lives
by trying to love
the only way they know how
who save lives without credit
by loving what others
couldn’t be bothered to try
who are just trying to live
themselves
who never get a Mother’s Day card
Today is your day too
everyday you are still
a mother
and there are no
perfect mothers
You Say You Want A Revolution
By Aaminah Shakur
“It’s gonna be
Alright
You know it’s
Gonna be
Alright”*
It will get better
It will be okay
Get your boots
On the ground
We will fight for you!
But where have you
Been???
This isn’t news
Didn’t just happen
Out of the blue
Mama Octavia warned us
And we reminded
You
We have been
Sounding the alarm
It will not be okay
I am not okay
We are not okay
It’s not
Okay
And you come too late
Offering too little
*Revolution, The Beatles
A Final Kiss
By Aaminah Shakur
I loved you secretly
Wore purple because my dad
wouldn’t notice
since it was his favorite color too
When I was a tiny adopted child
I dreamed of who my real parents were
thought I must belong
to a star
maybe a DeBarge
But didn’t see you as father material
you were something else
I couldn’t even name
I didn’t have the words yet
Before I understood what sex was
but not before I’d been sexualized
You were banned from our house
because you sang about it
moved in a way
they were sure would make
us kids think about it
I was mesmerized by you
your pretty face to rival Madonna
(who was also banned)
Your high-pitched voice made me
feel things no boy made me feel
before I understood I liked girls
“that way”
My introduction to it all was Freddie Mercury
Madonna trailed right behind
But you were
pure
something darker-deeper than they sang
you were crushed deep purple velvet
sensuous
I wore a raspberry beret even when I
refused to wear pink
Rebelled whatever way I knew how
Liked pretty men in full make-up
and women in suits
Wanted to be a drummer like Sheila E.
You wrote not only
the sexiest song ever
(take your pick, don’t try to guess
which one I mean
it could be any)
But all my favorite others too
You set the standard
no one has ever lived up to
And now all I can say
for as many as I’ve loved
over a lifetime
It is still entirely true
Nothing compares 2 U
