Our Lady in Brushstrokes

painting by PJF (1931–2022)

painter of lace and aprons,

of lemons and geese

index finger curled at the edge of her smirk

arrogant aura, part Crawford, part Davis

face parked at the intersection of Amusement and Surprise

pulled out of the South by her own bootstraps

and not without a family’s lashing

kept house like The Ritz

gave leftovers to squirrels

six decades of marriage twice left her a widow

mother once and stepmother twice

Mother Teresa she was not

but she knew where she wanted to be

and figured out how to get there

on terms all her own

brava

Our Lady

brava for that