Here is a featured poem from Rejecting My Family's Inheritance
A friend of the family came
to the family reunion at my
grandmother's house this year,
as she does every year,
named Jack Daniels or Moscato
or Seagram’s Gin and attached
to some of my family member’s hands.
She came as my uncle’s girlfriend,
my grandma’s ex-husband,
and my cousin’s friend from college.
She came dressed in different attire
and she had a different influence
on each family member, she came with,
as she does every year.
With my uncle,
she wore a shiny,
stiff, red cup, and
she danced with him
all night until the hardwood
floor came from under his feet
and made him fall on his butt.
We had to convince him that his
arm was not broken as she
laughed at him so hard, she
fell to the floor right beside him.
She was in a sexy, slim, wine
glass in my grandma’s hand.
She whispered in my grandma’s ear
to persuade her to tell her second husband
she didn’t really love him. He joked
about knowing this whole time, saying,
“I’ll put up wit yo’ crazy ass anyway!”
My cousin brought her half-naked,
hiding her glimmering, glass skin
in a brown paper bag that fit her
loosely like a dress. She convinced him
that he was better than everybody
since he went off to college.
She started a huge fight with
my uncles, who are twins.
She reminded one of them
of the time he got his girlfriend
stolen by the other one. They
threw heavy, drunken fists at each
other until my grandma yelled and
chased them with her stick.
“Get the hell ‘way from my house
wit dat foolishness,” she screamed
to them over and over again.
“How bout ev’rybody get out my house,”
she screamed again at everyone else.
Everybody slowly scurried away
like half-dead roaches to their
cars so they could leave. Our
family friend hid away quietly
in Bud Light bottles, moist wine
glasses that lingered on the kitchen
tables, and introverted red cups
as she looked at the damage she left
after the destruction she caused.
She was satisfied with the outcome
and next year she would bring
the family back together,
as she does every year.
