I'm sorry for the extra-long wait, the doctor tells me. None of us expected this. Two hours and finally I get to toss my panties on the chair beside us and open the puke pink gown just enough. We joke about our husband's intended vasectomies while her fingers ease inside. I see you're not from around here, so I confess it's harder than I thought to be seen by an OB, today, in this state. She responds, Imagine how hard it is to be the OB, today, in this state. If only this difficulty could be just imagined.
Julia Kolchinsky Dasbach (juliakolchinskydasbach.com) emigrated from Ukraine as a Jewish refugee when she was six. She is author of three collections: The Many Names for Mother; Don't Touch the Bones; and 40 WEEKS (YesYes Books, 2023). Her poems appear in POETRY, Ploughshares, and American Poetry Review. She holds an MFA from the University of Oregon and a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Julia wrote the model poem for dearukrainepoem.com. She is the Murphy Visiting Fellow at Hendrix College.
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