She's always been a tiny person,
a pixie in childhood,
bright-eyed and bird-boned.
She developed late,
wearing kid’s clothes
well into high school.
When she finally needed a bra,
the victory was bittersweet.
Even junior sizes were still
too big, so she had to sew
all her own clothes.
When she became a mother
she found that her breasts
so flowed with milk,
she donated the excess,
proving the adage
about size having nothing
to do with performance,
the breast milk center proceeds
feeding micro preemies
at the NICU.
Her own son was premature,
and she smiles to imagine his
dozens of milk siblings
partaking of her,
understanding only too well
what it’s like to be small
and underestimated.
Lauren Scharhag (she/her) is an associate editor for GLEAM: Journal of the Cadralor, and the author of thirteen books, including Requiem for a Robot Dog (Cajun Mutt Press) and Languages, First and Last (Cyberwit Press). Her work has appeared in over 150 literary venues around the world. Recent honors include the Seamus Burns Creative Writing Prize and multiple Best of the Net and Pushcart Prize nominations. She lives in Kansas City, MO. She tweets @laurenscharhag. To learn more about her work, visit: www.laurenscharhag.blogspot.com