I rather would.
It’d be stern,
but tender;

no broken bones
nor bruises,

only a disciplined hand
swift with love;

I rather would
it leave a sting that’s
fast and fathering.

 

Image credit:Charlotte Butcher
Starr

Pushcart Prize-nominated Poet, 1990; 6th Place Finalist, Massachusetts Cultural Council Artist Grant Awards, one-thousand dollar award recipient, 2002.