BJR

[ave maria]


our lady who crushes serpents
our lady of lamentations
our lady full of grace whose weeping statues bleed,
our lady who makes the sun dance, pray for us

our lady of salt pilgrimage
our lady of building demolition
our lady of crack houses
santa maria, madre de dios, pray for us sinners

our lady of unbroken hymens
preteen vessel of god’s seed
your uterus is a blessed receptacle.

our lady of neon strip joints
our lady of blowjobs in kerouac alley
our lady of tricked out street kids, pray for us

blessed mother of cholo tattoos
you are the tightest homegirl

our lady of filas and lipliner
our lady of viernes santo procession
our lady of garbage-sifting toothless men
our lady of urban renewal’s blight

pray for us sinners        ipanalangin n’yo kamin makasalanan
now and at the hour        ngayon at kung
of our death               kami ay mamamatay

amen

Barbara Jane Reyes

You can also read her poem “Eve’s Aubade” online at Boxcar Poetry Review

She has a blog and two books and she rocks