stud double after Diedrick Brackens (in duplex form after Jericho Brown)*

BY RASHEENA FOUNTAIN

I’m nurtured in the mud: with shelter, for safety, to sustain— Mask me in earth’s seams, our womb again

Mask me in earth’s seams, our womb again My sweat’s a sea for hope’s seedlings

.

My sweat’s a sea for hope’s seedlings Find me in Grandma’s catfish—unhooked, unbound

Find me in Grandma’s catfish—unhooked, unbound: regenerated, recycled, rebirthed, retold to break strongholds

Regenerated, recycled, rebirthed, retold to break strongholds

Our soil, the murky trails

Our soil, the murky trails as canines miscue our scent

As canines miscue our scent, remember me. I’m your ancestor, nurtured in the mud: unbothered, unmoved, unwavering—

*Poet Jericho Brown created the duplex, a poetry form that mixes the sonnet, the ghazal, and blues poem, which inspired Fountain’s poem response. She sought the duplex form as a way to speak to Diedrick Brackens’ catfish, Black southern and queer ecological themes in his work.