Civilian

civilian

she listens at night
for the purr of an engine
for the whistle of a rocket
for the bark of a gun
for a bang on the door

she hides her daughter
she does not ask her sons
where they go each night

she scavenges under a curfew
she lives under a false name

she mourns the dead
she knows the mourning
will never be done

she hopes for a clean death

Ama Bolton 4 March 2024. Image: Unwritten Page 15, botanical dyes on rag paper