A stubborn
girl child

determined
to explore

the places
off limits

to children
and challenge

boundaries set
by adults.

Her role models
those crazy

mad scientists
who lived

in giant houses
with laboratories

that came alive
while the world slept.

Her goal was
to create

all she could
with chemistry sets

left under tree
by Santa Claus.

She was baffled
how her family

did not appreciate
her efforts to

dedicate her
life to science,

science as defined
by a little girl

who adored
science fiction.

 

Janet Cormier is a painter, writes prose and poetry, and performs comedy. Janet prefers different and original over pretty. She loves collecting stuff, but cleaning not so much. Janet also talks to strangers. A lot. Her column appears weekly on Oddball Magazine.