I watched my mother, grandmother,
and great-grandmother
willingly crucify themselves
because they believed heaven
would reimburse them
for their day-to-day hells.
They obeyed without question,
passively turned the other cheek,
believed misogynist mumbo-jumbo,
died without having lives,
bought a crock of Vatican shit.
I’m tired of being a
good Italian Catholic,
raised on cautionary tales
of sacrificed martyrs,
denial and guilt.
I cut my teeth on torturous
stations of the cross,
spent Saturdays in catechism,
Sundays at mass.
Now I’m ready for thou shall,
want to break rules,
blow off responsibility,
sleep past noon,
stand naked in front
of the picture window,
shake my tits at the postman,
drink tequila shots on a Monday,
drop acid, experiment with mushrooms,
carelessly fuck a succession of strangers,
come loudly and often
without a single regret.
From: https://www.syndicjournal.us/cover-syndic-no-12/poetry-6-poems-by-jennifer-lagier/
Date: 2022
By: Jennifer Lagier (19??- )
From Troubles of The World 