i am an amalgamation
i am mother
i am a thin woman full of hummus and expectations
i have a soft voice but calloused hands
and i never wear white after Labor Day.
my life has been full of changing diapers, powdering bottoms, stirring pimento cheese and running 5Ks,
lulling children to sleep with stories and prayers,
and greasing the childproof doorknob with olive oil so they can't get back out even if they wake again.
but i am also quick and strong
with an inner voice that curses like a sailor.
i am understudy for the missing Beastie Boy (rip MCA).
i can move heavy furniture without waiting for my husband to come home to help,
and i have reset a toilet without breaking those little pins on the sides...even our plumber breaks the pins on the sides...
everyone breaks the pins on the sides...
but not me.
i am an amalgamation
a life-giver
a mommy
a warrior
as soft and fluffy as coconut cake, but as tough and wiry as turkey jerkey.
i love hard and will be your biggest cheerleader,
but if you step in that pile of dust in the middle of the kitchen floor that i just swept,
i will waterboard you