Safia Elhillo

Ode to Gossips

i was mothered by lonely women       some of  them wives     some of them             with plumes of  smoke for husbands    all    lonely smelling of  onions & milk         all mothers some of them to children some to old names phantom girls acting out a life        only half a life away      instead        copper kitchenware bangles pushed up the arm    fingernails rusted with henna          kneading raw meat with salt with coriander                     sweating upper lip in the steam       weak tea          hair unwound against the nape         my deities      each one sandal slapping against stone heel      sandal- wood & oud                    bright chiffon spun about each head     coffee in the dowry china butter biscuits on a painted plate      crumbs suspended in eggshell demitasse       & they begini heard       people are saying i saw it with my own eyes       [      ]’s daughter a scandal                  she was wearing [      ] ¬ wearing [   ]            can you imagine a shame                                             a shame