Forced
She remembers when They were just minute motes swirling in the hot, dark soup of her rocky womb. But that was eons ago and She has been through a lot since then — Periods of Hot-Quaking, Times of Near-Forgetting in Frozen Solitude. More recently, She enjoyed a long, gentle Calm — Rocking her babies in the not-too-warm sun, Singing lullabies in Temperate Tempos, Full Bellies, Safe Homes, A Steading Sowing and Sewing, A Sturdy, Patterned Quilt of Seasons. But now, They are pushing her in unprecedented ways — the ugliest, most clever, most naked of her many children. Forced by Them, Her breath is coming Hot and Fast now, Furious, Deep, and Destructive, Bending, Breaking, and Snapping some of her Eldest and most beloved — Their ancient, verdant crowns — Fallen and Gone. In places, She is Coerced into intense, unnatural, and unwanted Pregnancy. She bulges green — Exploding in pollen, ticks, and mosquitoes, Buds bursting painfully in midwinter, Cyanobacteria blooming phosphoresce