On accidentally getting pregnant at age 45 in America in 2024

One mother gave her child to the sea. Another gave it to her 24-year-old daughter. One swallowed witch hazel and red raspberry leaf tea but bloomed more. One doctor said, “we can take care of that.” Another doctor said, “but first look at this ultrasound.” One mother thought I can’t swallow these pills because my grandparents survived a genocide. Another swallowed them because of genocides. One Googled “abortion poems” but each one started with “I’m sorry.” One mother said, “when she gets to kindergarten, I’ll already be 50.” The last one stood in the Gulf, praying each slamming wave would reduce her to salt.

Jen Siraganian is an Armenian-American writer and former Poet Laureate of Los Gatos, California. Author of “Fracture,” she was co-winner of the New Ohio Review Poetry Prize, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize, and is a Lucas Artist Fellow. Her poetry has appeared in AGNI, Barrow Street, Best New Poets, Cortland Review, and Prairie Schooner. jensiraganian.com