after a school shooting: the cleanup crew
By Sister Lou Ella Hickman
the bodies are gone
so
today
i write
about the cleanup crew
those who see what we do not
and perhaps never will:
the desks
the white boards
the closets
o yes and the floors
how do they feel
when they kneel down
to pick up
the spattered scattered books
lunch boxes
artwork
finally
the dried chaos of blood
they must mop up
what do they feel
when they go home
when they open the door
when they sit in their easy chair
and drink their first stiff drink
Sister Lou Ella has a master’s in theology from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio and is a former teacher and librarian. She is a certified spiritual director as well as a poet and writer. Her poems have appeared in numerous magazines such as America, US Catholic, Commonweal, The Christian Century, Presence, Prism, and several anthologies. She was a Pushcart nominee in 2017 and 2020. Her first book of poetry entitled she: robed and wordless was published by Press 53 in 2015. Five of the poems were set to music and performed at 92Y in New York City on May 11, 2021.
Photo credit: “Mopping Up” by Steven Usher via a Creative Common license.
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