Jeri Theriault

AGAINST CONTAINMENT

sincere anti-weedist
you lay under-loam tarps
seal off  what you cannot 
love & call me robust   unruly  
invasive.
you admire me  
the way you praise loosestrife 
& clover  
from highways
in theory.  I paint 
your portrait 
in barbed wire. ragged 
seam.  red stitch. 
victim is always 
two-thirds victor.
you call me queen 
&  [s]end your last 
under-freeze comebacks.
I blossom
through [in]tense layers    
choose not to ru[i]n 
but to [sw]allow this [s]low  
ground    my seep 
unsealed.

Jeri Theriault’s collections include Radost, my red and the award-winning In the Museum of Surrender. Her poems and reviews have appeared in journals such as: The American Journal of Poetry, The Rumpus, Rhino and The Collagist. A 2019 Maine Literary Award winner, Jeri lives in South Portland, ME. www.jeritheriault.com