Poetry by Hillary Smith-Maddern
A Moving Pause
Listen to Hillary reading her poem:
Captain Al sends his sons
to catch fish for lunch.
The sea is cerulean
truth, a god
one can see through.
Not everyone can see god
and live, but we all saw
the sea, so serene,
watched turtles fly
through waves. My mother said
the sun was like a moving comma.
We sipped tea and danced
weightless in soft
swelling waves.
Captain Al grilled fish,
smoked in Aegean air.
We picked something like love
from our teeth, sweet
flesh melting
like memory.
Hillary Smith-Maddern is an educator whose work explores the intersections of feminism, identity, and rage. She is a proud cat lady and an avid collector of neglected plants. When not writing, she can be found exploring obscure topics, hiking in the mountains, or passionately critiquing the patriarchy. Her poetry has appeared in Only Poems, Rogue Agent, and The Disappointed Housewife, among others. She lives in Western Massachusetts.