CIRCLES

by Stellasue Lee


Bob says, “Stellasue,” and I say, Hi Bob,
he says, “I like that piece you read tonight.”
Thanks guy, I say, but truth is
all these poems I’m writing about the abuse from my childhood,
well, they’ve started me to think, and I’m reminded
of when I was teaching tennis in Europe¾
I played the European Tennis Circuit in ‘70,
and every chance I got I’d go to an American Army base
and offer tennis lessons to the men, or children, if there were any.
One day it dawns on me
that some people are afraid of getting hit by the ball.
Bob nods his head and I see he understands,
so I tell him, I’d make a point of hitting them¾
I say, I’d pick a place on their arm or thigh,
and hit them with the ball.
Bob looks stunned to think I’d do such a thing.
I tell him, I would run over and ask if they were hurt. 
You know, I say, they would be horrified.
I’d ask them to draw a circle around the spot
where the ball made contact.
By then, some of the shock had worn off,
and feeling a bit foolish, they’d draw a circle.
I’d ask them, on a scale of one to ten, ten being worse,
how much did it hurt?
They would be laughing by then and say it really didn’t hurt.
I’d tell them the reason they were having difficulty returning the ball
more than two or three times, is their fear of getting hit. 
Bob, I say, that’s what I’m doing by writing all this stuff,
cause I have to tell ya, I’m running out of abusive situations
to write about, and I feel like I’ve drawn a few circles;
I’m surprised too, I haven’t been hurt as much as I thought.
Bob stands there in his big frame, nodding and looking wise,
and when he speaks his voice is so quiet,
I strain to hear, “Ah yes,” he says, “we all have circles to draw.”       


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Stellasue Lee was a founding editor of Rattle, a poetry journal, and is now editor Emerita. Two of her books have been entrants for the Pulitzer Prize, Firecracker Red, and Crossing The Double Yellow Line. Her New & Selected Poems, Queen of Jacks, is now available. Dr. Lee was winner of the grand prize of Poetry to Aide Humanity in 2013 by Al Falah in Malaysia. She now teaches privately. Dr. Lee received her Ph.D. from Honolulu University. She was born in the year of the dragon.