I remember the old wives’ tale
repeated too many times
to me when I was little
Spit out those watermelon
seeds or you’ll grow a watermelon
So many of my friends imagined
that the melon itself would fill our
bellies making us appear pregnant
I always pictured the watermelon
outside of my belly, connected to
the vines wrapping ‘round and ‘round
in my gut like an out-of-use
garden hose
Walking by Charles Henry Alston
The Black folks are walking
During the bus boycott
Just like in Alston’s depiction
Rosa Parks inspired them
When we read about Rosa Parks to our daughter
From her book, whether it’s February or not,
And when we read about the many other
Strong Black women who look like Evelyn
Our little one looks at each page thoughtfully
Pointing to the feet of the woman depicted
“She has shoes,” Evelyn notes
We affirm her observation
“And she has shoes”
“And she has shoes”
“And she has shoes”
She points out on every page
“Yes, baby girl. Shoes for walking.”
CLS Sandoval, PhD (she/her) is a Pushcart nominated writer and communication professor with accolades in film, academia, and creative writing who speaks, signs, acts, publishes, sings, performs, writes, paints, teaches, and rarely relaxes. She’s presented at communication conferences, served as a poetry and flash editor, published 15 academic articles, two academic books, three full-length literary collections, and three chapbooks. She has recently published flash and poetry pieces in literary journals, including Opiate Magazine, The Journal of Magical Wonder, and A Moon of One’s Own. She is raising her daughter, son, and dog with her husband in Walnut, CA.
the Decolonial Passage 