Howerow, Louisa

English

ValpoScholar

A	  Woman	  Walks	  the	  Edge	  
Louisa	  Howerow	  	  
 of	  the	  sidewalk,	  past	  the	  strip	  mall,	  sobbing.	  We	  hear	  her	  through	  the	  rolled-­‐up	  windows	  of	  our	  car.	  	  My	  husband	  mutters,	  "Jeez,	  almighty,”	  brakes,	  rushes	  out.	  I'm	  faster.	  “Do	  you	  need	  help?”	  She	  waves	  us	  off.	  	  The	  question	  collapses	  on	  itself.	  Her	  sobs	  rise	  to	  wails,	  send	  us	  slinking	  back	  to	  the	  car	  where	  we	  slump,	  	  hold	  hands.	  I'm	  glad	  this	  man	  I	  love	  stopped	  to	  help.	  But	  all	  the	  way	  home,	  I	  keep	  seeing	  the	  woman,	  	  how	  her	  brown	  dress	  flapped	  against	  her	  ankles	  when	  she	  stumbled,	  ran	  from	  us.	  This	  is	  what	  it	  means	  to	  cry	  	  as	  if	  your	  heart	  will	  break.	  My	  god,	  we	  walk	  on	  cracked	  sidewalks.	  Do	  we	  cross	  our	  legs,	  swear	  off	  roses?	  	  	  	  Louisa	  Howerow's	  latest	  poems	  appeared	  in	  Red	  Earth	  Review,	  The	  Dalhousie	  Review,	  and	  
CV2/Contemporary	  Verse	  2,	  The	  Canadian	  Journal	  of	  Poetry	  and	  Critical	  Writing.	  	  Her	  work	  has	  also	  been	  included	  in	  anthologies,	  most	  recently,	  I	  Found	  It	  at	  the	  Movies:	  An	  Anthology	  
of	  Film	  Poems	  (Guernica	  Editions)	  and	  Imaginarium	  3:	  The	  Best	  Canadian	  Speculative	  Writ-­
ing,	  2014	  (ChiZine	  Publications)	  


A Woman Walks the Edge

Valparaiso University

A	  Woman	  Walks	  the	  Edge	  Louisa	  Howerow	  	   of	  the	  sidewalk,	  past	  the	  strip	  mall,	  sobbing.	  We	  hear	  her	  through	  the	  rolled-­‐up	  windows	  of	  our	  car.	  	  My	  husband	  mutters,	  "Jeez,	  almighty,”	  brakes,	  rushes	  out.	  I'm	  faster.	  “Do	  you	  need	  help?”	  She	  waves	  us	  off.	  	  The	  question	  collapses	  on	  itself.	  Her	  sobs	  rise	  to	  wails,	  send	  us	  slinking	  back	  to	  the	  car	  where	  we	  slump,	  	  hold	  hands.	  I'm	  glad	  this	  man	  I	  love	  stopped	  to	  help.	  But	  all	  the	  way	  home,	  I	  keep	  seeing	  the	  woman,	  	  how	  her	  brown	  dress	  flapped	  against	  her	  ankles	  when	  she	  stumbled,	  ran	  from	  us.	  This	  is	  what	  it	  means	  to	  cry	  	  as	  if	  your	  heart	  will	  break.	  My	  god,	  we	  walk	  on	  cracked	  sidewalks.	  Do	  we	  cross	  our	  legs,	  swear	  off	  roses?	  	  	  	  Louisa	  Howerow's	  latest	  poems	  appeared	  in	  Red	  Earth	  Review,	  The	  Dalhousie	  Review,	  and	  CV2/Contemporary	  Verse	  2,	  The	  Canadian	  Journal	  of	  Poetry	  and	  Critical	  Writing.	  	  Her	  work	  has	  also	  been	  included	  in	  anthologies,	  most	  recently,	  I	  Found	  It	  at	  the	  Movies:	  An	  Anthology	  of	  Film	  Poems	  (Guernica	  Editions)	  and	  Imaginarium	  3:	  The	  Best	  Canadian	  Speculative	  Writ-­ing,	  2014	  (ChiZine	  Publications)	  

https://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1020&context=act

A Woman Walks the Edge

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