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Spread the Word

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Imanni Sheppard, PhD

Contributor's Note

In this poem I wanted to bring to mind the way in which something so natural (and in some cases beautiful) can wreak havoc on the body. For example, ragweed can cause people to experience terrible allergic reactions and respiratory irritations. Yet, there is a freedom in its movement—a circumstance in direct contrast to someone who is very sick or otherwise bedridden.

In writing the free verse of Ragweed, the characteristics of the plant worked in tandem with how I perceived my mother while she was dying, how she perceived herself, and how we discussed her disease. Death, she would say, is such a natural part of life—and yet she felt betrayed by it. The cancer was not caused by something odd or external entering her body. It washer body—ravaging itself. It moved freely and unencumbered throughout her body while simultaneously limiting heractual movement. And thus, when given ragweed in a writing seminar only a few months after her death, I immediately thought of my mother. Or, perhaps I was already thinking of her

Ragweed

Vol 6: Iss 2, Poetry

living and dying simultaneously  
her hand wrinkled and weathered  
like  
red sorrel and white dandelion blooms  
in winter  

waiting to be reborn  
awaiting  
opportunity 
clinging to wishes never to be fulfilled  

hints of earth tones and red veins  
strewn about a body ravaged by radiation  
covered by the flaking and hopelessness 
of burned skin  
images of health betrayed  
regimens  
choices  
workouts  
obeyed  
ignored  
robbed  

once vibrant  
once gentle and graceful  
once filled with breath and memory  
living with the promise and anticipation
of a tomorrow
that never comes

but for a little while
for a little while 
the beauty of it and her remain

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