columbine from the Latin for “dove”
was a bright flower
popular with bees
perennially blooming in early spring
the nickel mines gave us a coin
legal tender
with a shield and stars
proclaiming our trust in God
and Marjory Stoneman Douglas
was a champion of the Everglades
and Sandy Hook was a small village
in the town of Newtown, Connecticut
so let’s name our schools after Oscar Romero
priest, scholar and martyr
he wouldn’t mind being gunned down twice
once in the name of Christ
and again in the name of nothing at all
Lara Dolphin is an attorney, nurse, wife and mom of four amazing kids; she is exhausted and elated most of the time.