Publication in Fence, Winter 2025

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The Apostrophe Blog

Musings on Writing and Life.

My short poem, “At Harriet Tubman’s Grave in Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York” is appearing in the print issue of Fence 42, Winter 2025—in the mail soon!

At Harriet Tubman’s Grave in Fort Hill Cemetery in Auburn, New York

I pick a pebble,
flick away the soil.
Use a little spittle to shine,
to emphasize the grain
before adding it to the orderly
granite headstone trail.
A grail is this towering spruce,
my respite in such unsparing
August heat. So many of us seek
to march, be victorious, stirred.
Here one lies.
All rebel, no pawn.
One arrow shot into the Milky Way
at night, arrayed.

The public domain photo above as taken in Mt. Pleasant, Maryland and posted on the website of Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway with the following caption: “Among the graves of the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, a Harriet Tubman re-enactor flees through the headstones and wet grass to freedom.”

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