Say

After Marjory Stoneman Douglas High

If I die by nightclub, downing, fire, school shooting,
someone else’s suicide, cop, running bases, protesting,

cab, bus, natural disaster, space junk, pesticides, disease,
pipe bomb, plane crash, in a movie theater etc..

If I die, and you don’t,
please don’t use any of these words:

The sweetest, nicest, toughest, warmest, shirt off her back,
full of life, easy going smiling, silly, shining, impactful,

uplifting, deep, cheerful, unique, soft, tender, sensitive,
adventurous, hardworking, outstanding, playful joyful,

grateful energetic fun loving angel, loved by all—
Most. Most. Most. Best. Best. Best.

Who enjoyed cats, poetry, sports, the beach, friends,
good times, music, films, myths and sci-fi.

Say I was a poet and an athlete,
and that I thought they were the same thing.

By Maranda Greenwood

A poem from Disarm: A Themed issue Responding to Mass Shootings in America

Biography:

Maranda Greenwood is a Vermont poet, she holds an MFA in Poetry from Arcadia University. Her work can be found in Sundog Lit, Eunoia Review, Crab Fat Magazine and other journals. In her free time she coaches field hockey and collects Zoltar tickets.