Self-Portrait
At age eighteen in sixty-six Her alter persona was masking a mix A fledgling artist, on canvas, portrayed The words of the secret She could not say The person she painted was staged in odd pose In loose fitting dress not tinted in rose Instead, it was brilliantly gaudy in hue Orange was the color …an obvious clue The flowing gown, which was painted bright Enhanced darkened skin, denying her white
Remorse was transferred from core to core She was the first painted …but there would be more And as each black woman did unfold The pregnant girl’s art captured feelings untold The silence she was told to keep Haunted her nightly as she tried to sleep Her pillow was moist with private tears And there were suffocated visions clouded in fear
Where would her infant baby be From time of birth through eternity The artist felt so all alone Shamed in such untimely zone Then the paint would dry And another day end Until her painted emotions would purge again. © Susan Van Sleet Birthmother/ Artist/ Author
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