Stillborn
You were wanted,
not an accident.
Your first fluttering cells
set plans pulsing—
names, knitting, nursery colors,
universities.
Though two others came before,
I saved a part for you.
Sometimes a heart stops beating
and dreams bleed free
in a slow, red river
of barren pain.
No healing prayers,
no reasons sought,
none given.
Just one of those things.
But it wasn’t an accident.
You were wanted
elsewhere.
# # #
Merrijane grew up in Bountiful, Utah. She earned a BA in English from BYU and then served a mission to Washington, D.C. After returning, she married Jason Rice. Together, they’re raising a family of four boys. She currently works for Deseret Mutual as a technical writer.
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