Puberty

To have puberty creep upon your daughter
like a secret is as much a shock
to you as it is to her, a hemorrhage
in a healthy mind, a maiden tremor
on a quiet lake triggering a vein of fear
nature’s sick idea of a practical joke.

Without splitting hairs (stuffed bosoms apart)
there should be warning signs
like blood-shot eyes, off-colour fingernails
schools of fish swimming in the skies
like an omen. When hogs dance it will rain
and moons can tell tomorrow’s weather.

Your daughter needs to pad up for her opening
period at the wicket like a prudent bat
balls can surprise you in this sticky
atmosphere. She should have a rite
to celebrate the run of innocence
and the new pubic dispensation.

(Stuffed bosoms apart) I hope the next stage
comes with ceremony, exchange of ribs
and a dance license. To have puberty trickle down
your daughter like a secret is no romance
as much a shock to parent as to child
both can have a heart attack.

Dr. Fergus has published widely in education, history, politics and poetry. His works include: Laura Rains and Colonial Rites (Peepal Tree Press, Leeds, UK 1998); Volcano Song: Poems of an Island in Agony (Macmillan, 2000); A History of Education in the British Leeward Islands, 1838–1945 (UWI Press, 2003); Montserrat: History of a Caribbean Colony (Second Edition, Macmillan, 2004) and Volcano Verses (Peepal Tree Press, 2003). Professor Fergus won a UWI Vice Chancellor’s Award of Excellence in 1996 and was knighted by H.M. the Queen for public service in 2001. Look for a selection of his work in a future Ahadada Reader.