Do Not Hide

by Shelly Blankman


Do not hide your face. Do not live his shame.
You were a wildflower dancing in a field 
speckled with the jeweled colors of spring
when he plucked you, so rare, so fragile.

He said he would nourish you, nurture and
protect you. Then he closed the door, shut out
the sun, left you to drown in thick tears of 
his liquored crime, your soul to wither and die.

But wildflowers do not die. They wait for rain
and grow again. Do not hide your face or live
his shame. Let us see your beauty through 
your pain, keep you safe as you bloom again.
A wildflower is not a weed. 


* * * * *

"Do Not Hide" was first published in First Literary Review.

Shelly Blankman lives in Columbia, Maryland with her husband of 43 years. They have two sons, Richard and Joshua, who live in New York and Texas, respectively. They have filled their empty nest with four rescue cats and a dog. Richard and Joshua surprised Shelly with the publication of her first book of poetry, Pumpkinhead. Her poems have appeared in The Ekphrastic Review, Verse-Virtual, Muddy River Poetry Review, and Open Door Magazine, among others.