A small ant explores my palm’s universe
scurries across cracks, traces the longitude
of my life line. Let me read yours, a soon to be
lover once said, number three in his repertoire
of seduction, and of course it worked its way
into our short story. Back then, in our twenties
we came at love full frontal, unblemished by
the linearity of loss that lay ahead. And besides
he was beautiful, or perhaps it was my desire
to see him that way and to be seen that way
in return. It was a soft backdrop to political
awakening. And here we are again, marching.
I cup my hand softly, reach for the screen door
release the ant to appetites of morning.
In The Living Room
Babo Kamel resides in Montreal, Quebec and in Raleigh, North Carolina. Her work has appeared in the Greensboro Review, Painted Bride Quarterly, CV2, Poet Lore, and Best Canadian Poetry 2020 among others. She is a Best of Net nominee, and a six-time Pushcart nominee. Her chapbook, After, is published with Finishing Line Press. She holds an MFA from Warren Wilson’s Program For Writers. Her book, What The Days Wanted is published with Broadstone Books