content warnings
war, trauma, sexual assault
[280 words]
I.
my mother said they took my son a blue-eyed blonde
he must go someone said that he was young enough
she begged my father he needed to be given away
to save the child’s life a shot and so they took him
by stealth and i never saw him again
II.
caught they put me in a cell i was forced to work
in retribution my children were led away for the komandant
my fate sealed the agent rapes me he said
i was raised in a cottage crawling with toads and if i scream
he likes hurting me steam swirls worse follows
billows rise and where have they gone
heaven help me disappear
III.
when the moon began to influence my body i tried to escape
relocated against my will locked in a doorless tower
by the river i know nothing of my family’s fate
like a leaf swept away my daughter couldn’t swim
and I fear the worst the birds my god
regard me with pity
IV.
i sit near the window and i thought we’d get across the border meant safety but
listen we were caught on the road
roosters crow they sent us back my son was conscripted
at night an owl calls they killed him shot for refusing to fight
cold stars glitter at point blank range i weep
and sometimes i dream
my daughters dare not go out
shells rain down
two children play they’re hungry the wounded are everywhere
a man without eyes stumbles forth
we have no food and we have lost
the braid
oh my son all hope
falls writhing to the ground
Linda Scheller is a retired educator and the author of two books of poetry, Fierce Light (FutureCycle Press, 2017) and Wind & Children (Main Street Rag, 2022). Her poetry, plays, and book reviews appear in numerous publications including Hawai’i Pacific Review, Plays, Colorado Review, and Wisconsin Review. She serves as vice president of Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center and programs for KCBP Community Radio. Her website is lindascheller.com.
“rapunzel/refugees/slavic” was previously published in Stanislaus Connections, in October 2019.
