Amidwives: Two Portraits

by coming between

her husband

and the woman who

whelped him. And

should he bemoan

the sweet taste gone,

she’ll boast of how she

helped him—helped

him get beyond

his milks at last, and cut

from gums beneath

—the better to shake

her memory with—

permanent teeth.

a married man who

was once her darling

son. She can’t conceive

of anyone loving him

through and through

as she has done. She’ll

do whatever it takes

to test his trust. She’ll

run a tempered blade

into the marriage

bed and find the naked

place where she was

most betrayed

—and thrust.