Poetry By B. Fulton Jennes

Christian Collins CC




I Was a Child            It Fell to Me

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It fell from the nest      it was pushed
its mother wanted to retrieve it
didn’t      couldn’t
it was sick      it was perfect  
just wanted to fly     too soon.

Leave it be        let the cats have it    
let it die     she chided
wouldn’t leave    peeling potatoes  
at the sink    to help.

I would save it     
it was mine     not hers.

Egg yolk, bread crumbs
dolloped     from a doll spoon
into a pink craw     of raw need
please    please     please.

Eyes hazing     crazing     
desperate child     determined
head wobbling     limp now
a beautiful small thing    
to bury.

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B. Fulton Jennes’ poems have appeared widely in literary journals and anthologies, including CALYX, Comstock Review, Rust and Moth, SWWIM, and Tupelo Quarterly. Her collection Blinded Birds (Finishing Line) received the 2022 International Book Award for a poetry chapbook. Another chapbook, FLOWN, will be published by Porkbelly Press in 2024.