by David Boyle
Just This Way
inspired by Drew Lanham’s Joy Is The Justice We Give Ourselves
just is the way i left a couple of husbands
joy released from commitments
only bent martyrs reveled in the unnecessary
widgets on some home screen
freedom – no more menstrual cycle makes me
want to add it to my Fitbit just
to fuck with AI algorithms tracking my travels
for ‘cross state line abortions
happy to witness the unmasked face of testosterone
realization
i had a total hysterectomy in 2006
i would call them eggheads but that’s an insult to birds
unjust to creatures – sky – earth – together
with varied beaks & flight speeds.
perhaps
i am influenced by the word stitching
the pop of needle piercing
zooping hiss of thread sluicing fabric
joy
is the fabric.
Suzanne S. Rancourt, Abenaki/Huron, Quebecois, Scottish descent, USMC, and Army Veteran: author of Native Writers’ Circle of the Americas First Book Award, Billboard in the Clouds2004; 2019 murmurs at the gate received the 2023 Poetry of Modern Conflict Award; Old Stones, New Roads 2021 was a 2020 Autumn House finalist; Songs of Archilochus, 2023. Suzanne is a multimodal EXAT, a Writing the Land Project Fellow; Guest Artist at UMI’s New England Literature Program, Sundog Poetry Center, & Solstice MFA; Keynote for Maine Military & Community Network Annual Conferences 2023 & 2024. For more info about Ms. Rancourt’s published works, interviews, EXAT philosophies, please explore her website: www.expressive-arts.com.
David Boyle’s oil paintings have sold well in Wellington, Palmerston Nth and he has sold sculptures from Hastings City gallery New Zealand. David has t-shirts featuring his works and makes sculptures from found objects. David’s art has been seen in online magazines and hardcopy such as Last Leaves, The Woodward Review, Five on the Fifth, Radar Poetry, Mollusk Lit.,Thimble Lit., Creative Mag, Club Plum, Thimble Mag, Zoetic Press, Two Hawk Quarterlys, Poetry Pacific, Small Wonders, Ink in Thirds, Happy Hybrid, the Hippocampus Anthology and Backwards Trajectory. Website is boyleswellington.