Letter to My Mom’s Ex-Boyfriend
You wouldn’t want me now
that I’m almost thirty and grown
to half your size. You loved me
as your lover’s young daughter,
the outlawed apple you ate alone.
It would have been different
had I dined with you, growing
larger with each bite.
Maybe I’d have been as much
more-than-bone as I am now,
as my mother always has been.
I’ve always wanted you
to be my dad. Even now,
as I write a formal list
of all the reasons to keep you
the length of the law away
from me, I just want to hug you
without considering the shape
of my nipples as they graze
your chest, or the softness
of my voice as I say
I miss you. I love you.
I mean this
as a daughter
to her dad.
Bio – Anastasia DiFonzo (she/her) is a San Diego based poet with a cat named Klaus. Her debut chapbook, A Certain Serenity, is out now with Puna Press. Currently, her work can be found in Olney Magazine, Serotonin Poetry, Tempered Runes Press, and elsewhere. When she’s not writing, she can be found hugging her cat, drinking coffee, and/or staring blankly into the abyss. Feel free to contact her at anastasiadifonzo.com, or on Instagram @anastasia.difonzo or Twitter @anmidaludi
