Katrina Washington
Instructions for My Funeral Too
When I die
wash but don’t press
my hair
Dress me in Ankara
and pretend that
you know and
I knew
where I came from
I don’t need a preacher
A choir
Or flowers
following me to death
Sing Maya and Toni
Olivia Pope and Rosa
Beyonce and SZA
Assata had a song
didn’t she?
Don’t put me in soil
on land I don’t own
but don’t
take me home either
You’ll have to burn me
But don’t use no fire
not baptized
by my children
They’ll know
what that means
This earth owes me
but our reunion
won’t be memorialized
It won’t come easy
It will not be
where my grandchildren
can find me
Don’t cry
because I died
I cried a lot
when I was living
Let my ashes
do the mourning
Concoct a Backwood
large enough to
pearl me and
then light me again
Let it die out
over and over
again
‘til I’m gone
Let some future
girl of the south side
write my eulogy
never having been told
anything about me.
It should be inappropriate.
Our secrets.
My search history.
All the pictures I ever sent.
Expose me.
Or don’t. But find a way
to do away
with all the duality
I never escaped.
For the first time
introduce me
exactly as I am
and then
forget me
wash but don’t press
my hair
Dress me in Ankara
and pretend that
you know and
I knew
where I came from
I don’t need a preacher
A choir
Or flowers
following me to death
Sing Maya and Toni
Olivia Pope and Rosa
Beyonce and SZA
Assata had a song
didn’t she?
Don’t put me in soil
on land I don’t own
but don’t
take me home either
You’ll have to burn me
But don’t use no fire
not baptized
by my children
They’ll know
what that means
This earth owes me
but our reunion
won’t be memorialized
It won’t come easy
It will not be
where my grandchildren
can find me
Don’t cry
because I died
I cried a lot
when I was living
Let my ashes
do the mourning
Concoct a Backwood
large enough to
pearl me and
then light me again
Let it die out
over and over
again
‘til I’m gone
Let some future
girl of the south side
write my eulogy
never having been told
anything about me.
It should be inappropriate.
Our secrets.
My search history.
All the pictures I ever sent.
Expose me.
Or don’t. But find a way
to do away
with all the duality
I never escaped.
For the first time
introduce me
exactly as I am
and then
forget me
Biography
|
Katrina Washington (she/her) is a poet and prose writer from the south side of Chicago. She holds a BA in English with a concentration in Poetry as well as Masters in Higher Education and Organizational Leadership. She is currently pursuing a PhD in English with concentrations in Poetry, Prose, and Black Studies. Outside of teaching and writing, Katrina enjoys cooking with her husband and son. Kissing Dynamite is now the home of Katrina's first piece of published work since childhood.
Instagram Handle: @wife.mom.write |
