Never-ending Story
For E
Once upon a time, a whisper
of a girl lived
three homes away
from the charming, attractive, attentive
big brother
of her babysitter.
Everyone praised him. He
praised
the little girl.
He smiled his charming smile
at her
and touched her
and touched her
and touched her until
she was ten.
The end
was not the end.
Some stories gnaw
at the bones.
Some stories have tendrils
that hold.
Some boys come back
from college, and
walk down the street and
wave
their cheerful hellos.
of a girl lived
three homes away
from the charming, attractive, attentive
big brother
of her babysitter.
Everyone praised him. He
praised
the little girl.
He smiled his charming smile
at her
and touched her
and touched her
and touched her until
she was ten.
The end
was not the end.
Some stories gnaw
at the bones.
Some stories have tendrils
that hold.
Some boys come back
from college, and
walk down the street and
wave
their cheerful hellos.
September / October, 2022
Jennifer L. Freed writes and teaches in Massachusetts. Her collection, When Light Shifts (Kelsay, 2022), based on the aftermath of her mother's stroke, was a finalist for the Sheila Margaret Motton book prize. Other awards include the 2022 Frank O’Hara Prize and the 2020 Samuel Washington Allen Prize.
Art: Madge Evers. This is Your Hometown. Mushroom spores on paper.