Woman, Green

In your thunder, nothing green could live. 

-Enheduana 

You were the seventh child of eleven 

The preacher's daughter, sickly blue-eyed child 

The preacher's sickly daughter, anxious child

Born of a shattered mother, bitter nerves 

Born of a bitter mother, shattered nerves 

When you would cry, the girls took you outside 

When you cried, Frances carried you outside

Under green-gray juniper's shadow lace 

Under shadows of juniper, green lace 

You were content, with green in soft blue eyes 

You were blue green, soft, with contented eyes

Watching needles waving gently greet you 

Watching green things greet you, gently call you

You'd spend your life in chase of green and earth 

You'd live kin, church, and birth, you'd love green earth

The leaves smell real, the wooden house does not

The ferns are real, the vinyl floor is not 

Where you go, the flower-things will follow 

Where you live, petunias always follow 

Green glossy, petal pink, and watered earth

Green mossy fence, pink stems, your softened earth

You'll build a wall of green to keep your house 

You'll keep a world of green, it is your house

The house your sisters taught you how to clean 

The sisters also taught you dirt is clean 

This love of willow, bramble, tiger lily 

This love the sisters gave you—Frances, Lily

Rosemary, and your aunts and grandma's green 

Rosemary, Frances, Lily gave you green The

sisters taught you safety in the leaves

The safety which you found among the leaves

You now proliferate across your world 

You keep it small, blest are they in your world

Where nothing shattered, nothing bitter stays 

Where you have healed, still healing all who stay

With life you've learned to glean from growing things 

With life your sisters gave you, living things

The sickly child became the woman well

The blue-eyed child has made her people well

You were the seventh child of eleven

By Pamela Zimmerman