southern women
always seem
exhausted to me
i’m no exception
legs aching
in need
of a cold drink
perhaps
it’s partially
the toil over laundry
an oven’s heat
adding to
insufferably thick
summer
locust cry
air
hammock reading
gardens demanding attention
heaviness in their breasts
too soon to explain
why the chickens have gone quiet
and keeping secrets
from their husbands