Civil War
I stare out the window
in a fog created by the war
of hormones fighting
for purchase
in my body.
The neighbors fence fell down
several months ago in a bad storm,
now it sits like a crooked gap
between the teeth
of well groomed
yards.
They have made no attempt to fix it
and sometimes their small dog
runs into the other neighbors yard
to get him to play, but he is aging,
struggling to keep up his end
of the lawn most weeks.
The dryer has a high pitched hum
like something is off in the mechanics, and the washer
churns the unseen dirt
from our lives.
The sky is gray today, wind
fluttering prayer flags
and today my only ask
of the universe
is enough strength
to keep breathing.
Aleathia Drehmer spends a lot of time thinking up new challenges for herself when writing poetry, but mostly, you can find her gardening, making fire cider and herbal teas, and messing around with astrology. She is the co-editor of “Brian Fugett: Poems” that is forthcoming from Citizens for Decent Literature Press. Aleathia is the author of seven chapbooks and currently has four collections of poetry available: Little Graveyards (Roadside Press), We Don’t Get to Write the Ending (Roadside Press), Looking for Wild Things (Impspired), and Layers of Half-Sung Hymns (Cajun Mutt Press). You can follow Aleathia’s journey at www.aleathiadrehmer.com
