Truth Magazine Issue 4 2019

Her hands and mouth wiped clean of the grease,
the teenage re-enters the joint and emerges yet again
with smaller but still greasy portions for the subdued ones in the back.
Break’s over!!!
The battered van blares out into the congested street again-Who is she? Where did she come
from and- where is she going?
She is from a generation of subdued and subjugated, whipped women,-
Pushed down and
– pushed aside and
- pushed away;
Never celebrated; never told or shown her worth so-
Just maybe the van is a reflection of her life?
She has carried so many others for a long time- her siblings,
her children, her own parents, her husband, her friends
while she does her best to survive;
no consistent maintenance here only necessary, minimum repairs;
no time for body work or winterisingthe
loudness of the exhaust lost in the din and humdrum of life
just another one needing overhauling.
Don’t you dare judge her.
There is more to her than you see or understand
‘cause under the hood, that sputtering engine is roaring to fulfill destiny.
If you knew her you would know that - despite awful and sometimes abusive relationships, her
capacity to love and nurture and care for others did not wane
If you knew her you would know her persistence, 0bstacles and opposition pushed her to
hone and carve and fine-tune her character.
If you only knew her, you would know that her resilience has hoisted her higher than she has ever
fallen andwhat
sounds like a cacophony to you is her symphony of lifeliving
out loud -full of love and laughter.
By POLLYANA DARRELL
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