Poetry/free verse
Who Keeps These Women Running in the City?
The needle
She saw through bodies passing phases of aided beauty She knows their belly bulges their knee dimples their side boobs wandering
She saw them through razor dresses seducing targets suits to kill clients wedding night specials depression-wear pants before maternity-wear pants after maternity-wear tired gowns once resplendent aged work tops begging a second lease
stock market crashes the city sits tight Her needle steady
She saw them through the ’80s extravaganza the ’97 financial crisis the 2000 boom the 2003 SARS the 2008 burst the 2021 silence the 2023 resuscitation crawl
stitch in. stitch out never a word of judgement stitch in. stitch out
She saw it coming they whispered to Her silver curls Her loyal specs breathing in concentration in. out thread color on perfect par with fabric exacting excruciating stitches in. out take in. let out
She saw the busted city busted customers busted garb stitch in. stitch out
more more make them triumphant make them last more more make them stunning make them god more more make them envious mannequins make no perfect bod
the city pivots on Her needle in. out
© Pseu Pending (Seu) 2023
There’s no nest like The Howling Owl’s nest. Thank you Zay Pareltheon, Viraji Ogodapola, and Marilyn J Wolf.