Welcome to Poetically Yours. Poetically Yours showcases poems by northern Illinois poets. This week's featured artist is Jody 'padumachitta' Goch.
Goch is from Canada but currently lives in the German Black Forest. Her poems and stories are published on platforms like Wild Word, Co-Op Poetry and a few other places. She writes poetry and short fiction, chops wood for the stove, wanders and meditates in the forest. Her jeans and shirt pockets are full of stories and poetry. It’s hell on the washing machine. She rescued a short story from the lint catcher and it was published in an anthology. Since then, Jody checks even when there’s no laundry. Here’s her poem “Moving.”
I done walked away. Just walked from so much in my life.
Okay, being honest I’ve run some.
Childhood taught me to get out of bad situations before they become life threatening.
To hoof it before the fists swung, the swearing percolated, or the doors slammed.
Just get gone and come back later if you had to eat, do it quiet like. Real quiet.
When beer soup was served for dinner and breakfast was orange juice and vodka -
getting gone got earlier and earlier
until you didn’t have to.
Until getting gone meant changing families, attitudes and clothes.
Staying until that pressure cooker started to howl,
and knowing to blow on out of there as well, just never settle.
Don’t know what made me take to my boots and leave bars before the knife fight
parties before the cops busted in and busted heads. I got no record.
Just kept moving until I got tired, then stayed a while,
until my legs hurt from standing and needed to walk it out.
Left behind the drunk family. The wondering who I went home with last night.
The needing to pick up my keys from the bar tender the day after.
Left it until I didn’t need to look back anymore and got me some staying power.
Now it’s all receding in the rear-view mirror
even when I’m not moving.
