It Takes a Village

by Jenny Morelli

I am the remnants of my past,

fragments of my family’s

growing, flowing patchwork

quilt, each square a memory, 

an experience, an observation

of failures, and successes; each square 

a piece of advice passed down

from one generation to the next,

Image credit: Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash

and endless relentless counsel

from Dad and Mom, from sister

and brother and aunts and neighbors

and grandmas and grandpas. Don’t

look down, new glasses                                 

are expensive. Don’t look up,

you’ll appear pretentious.

Your beautiful eyes

are even prettier in frames,

but four eyes will make you                                                                           

an outcast.                 

Wearing dresses and heels

attracts unwanted attention.

Hairspray and makeup are feminine,

but wear too much and you’re a whore. 

Straighten your hair.

Curls make your face look fat.

Sitting with crossed legs

is demure but prudish.

Playing with boys                                                      

today will deter                                                          

them from dating                                                       

you tomorrow.                                                           

If you’re in the sun too long,

You’ll look like a n**r

Why can’t you be smarter

like your brother and sister?

Marry the first time young     

and dumb to learn who you are                                             

and again older and wiser, (unless

your first marriage destroyed your will to live)

Yes. I am remnants and fragments

of my past, but I’m stitching and weaving

and hemming and sewing the rags of yesterday

into new squares with my own truths

because I’ve learned that confidence

doesn’t come from conformity,

and the most beautiful thing I can wear

isn’t clothes or makeup or heels or hairspray 

or straight hair or dark tan,

but a simple stand-don’t-sit,

face-to-the-sun courage

to be myself.

***

Jenny Morelli

Jenny Morelli is a high school English teacher who lives in New Jersey with her husband and cat. She is often either inspired by her students or else they're triggering memories in her of when she was young and struggling with her self-confidence. She has been published in a number of literary magazines, including Spare Parts for a novel excerpt, Spillwords for several themed poems, and Bottlecap Press for her own chapbook This is Not a Drill.