Her Last Kitchen
Start with the perishables.
Peaches sunsetting on a white plate.
Spotted bananas in a wooden bowl.
Spotted bananas in a wooden bowl.
Do you know the formal name for a bunch
of bananas? A hand.
A single fruit, a finger.
of bananas? A hand.
A single fruit, a finger.
Some hungers require an amputation.
At root, bread means fragment.
You are fed, yes, but the whole is broken.
You are fed, yes, but the whole is broken.
When we were all still very young
our father called her Mother Hen.
She called us her chickadees. Her brood.
our father called her Mother Hen.
She called us her chickadees. Her brood.
The years of care and feeding, the raising, done,
the whole broken
into seven pieces.
the whole broken
into seven pieces.
Give us this day this dismantling.
I toss and clean, leaving the cups and plates, forks and spoons.
But then, here is something I can use:
I toss and clean, leaving the cups and plates, forks and spoons.
But then, here is something I can use:
her little spice shelf’s cream of Tartar,
nutmeg, ginger, and rosemary.
Pure ground black pepper in a tin.
Coarse grain sea salt, ready for grinding.
nutmeg, ginger, and rosemary.
Pure ground black pepper in a tin.
Coarse grain sea salt, ready for grinding.
--published in MER - Mom Egg Review Vol. 24 2026