The Sins of Our Holy Mother

mindsoul
Written By Rachelle Edwards

Forgive me, children,

for I confused martyrdom 
as an omen of righteousness,
when all I enabled was abuse.

While the All-Father thundered,
I needled you to reiterate:
do to yourself what is done to you.

Forgive me, children,

in my stained-glassed pride
I tried to hold us all together,
masking a disfigurement of peace—

for I could not be content 
with a world I did not build,
so I strived to criticize you better.

Forgive me, children,

for your heartstrings are still attached
to my fingers; I can’t help but be
the master of strings.

Pardon my gift of manipulation;
it is the one thing I control…
if not you, then who?

Rachelle Edwards

Rachelle Edwards is a poet, word-agitator and unconventional feminist. After kicking the American educational system to the curb, she decided to devote her time to reading, writing, and teaching her children to be authentic, inquisitive individuals. She was mentored by poet Christopher Kondrich, whose poetry book Valuing won the 2019 National Poetry Series, and poet Christine Hemp, who has taught writing at Harvard University and Iowa Summer Writing Program. When Rachelle is not reading or writing, she can usually be found talking to her plants.

Previous

Accepting Our Darkness is the First Step to Transcending It
Next

Why We Need to Reconnect with Our Feminine Energy