Fallen Blossoms
Yemi Miller-Tonnet
We are the fallen blossoms from the choke cherry tree upon Sethe’s back.
Our mothers bloomed
Smashing concrete
Busting up bricks
All so we could
fall
and
root
and
sprout
and
grow
Sethe said
They cannot take what you release
Freely.
My daughters unborn
small like the pollen in the mouth of the bee
My grandmothers
Deeply rooted forests
vessels for life
amorous arbors stretching toward each other from branch to root.
Always creating
Living without fear of a lightning strike
Or a man with an axe
Yemi Miller-Tonnet (she/her/hers) is a Black Queer Femme liberation strategist, abolitionist, and reproductive justice organizer. Based in Atlanta, GA, Yemi works as a domestic violence legal advocate, indie feminist bookseller, and abortion provider. Yemi is also a full-spectrum doula working with marginalized folks through their reproductive journeys.