Ray Miller chose this month's poem. He says of it, "What I admire about the poem is its restraint and dignity, even the rhymes are spare and unobtrusive.It is a heart rending poem which manages to steer clear of self-pity."

Find out more about Alison and her poetry at http://www.writeoutloud.net/poets/alisonjohnson

Wife and Mother

I have not eagerly sought a blue line,
gulped down a budding desire for a plus.
I have seen the results of a CAT scan,
and been told the sentence is death.

I have not embraced a nine month gestation
growing clucky, proud and rotund.
I endured a similar duration of
wiping puke from the mouth of a man.

I have not watched a baby come into this world
screaming then start his first wail.
I have kissed the lips of a dead man
and inhaled as his last breath failed

Though my dreams don't come to fruition
and my story’s not for publication
In my own life hope still glimmers -
as friends get brighter, the past gets dimmer.

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