THROW LIKE A GIRL

 by Tina Klimas

“And though she be but little, she is fierce.”
—Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

In all those long years
in a life of hiding—draped
in baggy clothes and careful speech—
may there be moments
of feeling mighty. Of being fierce.

Here she is, in a pristine uniform
and a baseball cap that almost
swallows her tiny face,
standing front and center
before coach—her stance eager,
electric, focused. Yet her hunger
remains largely ignored.
Coach occasionally tosses
a ball to her, which she returns,
each time, with a consistent,
powerful skill—remarkable
for one so young.

Instead, he targets
her teammates—little boys
who look like toddlers—
who sprawl out, fool around,
watch the kids on the slide,
call to my dog, sit in the grass
and pick at bugs, gaze at clouds.
One gets yelled at, gets up,
fidgets, misses the catch, scuffles,
winds up, and, like a ragdoll,
flings the ball. Which skids
on the ground to her feet—

the seed of bitterness dropping
into this moment. Does it
make her stumble? Does she wait
for praise that never comes?
Does the seed take root
to grow a lifetime of shame?
Because the balls will keep
coming—heedlessly hurtled
by boys who will refuse to stop
fooling around and pay attention,
who will grow into men
who will lob words at her,
at a different ball game,
about what they want to do
to her body.

Oh that, today, she sidesteps this missile!
Oh that the sun gilds her moment,
that she may be fierce.
So that she may anticipate
other golden moments unspooling
into her future. So that balls may
ricochet off of her might.


* * * * *

Tina Klimas's poems can be found in THEMA Literary Journal, Bear River Review, The Sow’s Ear Poetry Review, Backchannels, Autumn Sky Poetry Daily, Willows Wept Review, and Glassworks Magazine. Her short fiction has also been published in several journals. She enjoys her writing life in Redford, MI where she lives with her husband and their dog.