oh Addie,
you rest in power
the privileged kind
a dying wish that for your family becomes
a death wish of sea monster proportions

the dirge of your daughter
is for her child as well
and the nails of your coffin
cannot keep the book of Addie closed
even for a night

you plucked the minister’s bed
a stench even before death
that oozed in your sweat
and your children too
a curse of verse and platitude

oh, Addie
the dead woman drowns
floats, in a coffin boat
a tainted fish
reeled back in to be roasted on a fire

oh, Addie
where behavior and intention meet
whether noble or nefarious
your children wash their hands
of you;
and your husband,
smiling through fake teeth and faker blessings
grooms a bride
found with the shovels borrowed for your burial
rest in power
rotting
oh, Addie