Cheryl Julia Lee (b. 1991)
SELECTED POEMS
This House Stands Divided
Sometimes, sitting around the dinner
table feels like a parliamentary
meeting. The agenda is simply to slug.
The two sides are unevenly drawn
but clear although we play jump-rope
with them. No one is taking minutes
but you can be sure that whatever you say
will come back to haunt you
because in my family, everyone’s a historian.
We hold our knives and forks
with conviction, we attack as a pack.
We are usually this close to throwing chairs.It takes five years, two houses, three tables,
and my sixteen-year-old brother to point
out that this is a toxic environment. It takes
me so long because I am always on the bullying
side. This is not an apology although perhaps
it should be; this is an expression of regret
that this is the house we have built and furnished
with our own hands.A house divided can stand. It finds its footing
in anticipation of collapse. When the time
comes, there will be no bitter battle
over the inheritance.
by Cheryl Julia Lee
from We Were Always Eating Expired Things (2014)
