Nikki Ummel

pelvic congestion syndrome

lead-bellied except

deeper, lower uterus groaning

i’m tired of losing

     and what of this body?

        my mother splayed on the bed

spread her labia and said see

this is how it goes and plunged in a tampon

     the day she found a washcloth dyed with me

     and today

my pelvic floor therapist

     jellied her glove      stuck 

her hand in     listened for my vacating

womb       reverberate      i’m sick 

      of this shit

    one hour a week i’m 

pried open           lay there a prodded

        prize cattle readied for mating          c’mon, 

    join the crowd          put your ear to my bowl-belly

hear the tender arterial jam   my interstate of veins

    strangling themselves to get free

Nikki Ummel is a queer artist, editor, and educator. Nikki has been published in Painted Bride Quarterly, The Adroit Journal, The Georgia Review, and others. She is the 2022 recipient of the Leslie McGrath Poetry Prize. A reader for Peauxdunque Review and editor for Bear Review, Nikki is the co-founder of LMNL, an arts organization focused on readings, workshops, and residencies. She has a poetry chapbook, Hush (Belle Point Press, 2022) and a hybrid chapbook, Bayou Sonata (NOLA DNA, 2023). You can find her on the web at www.nikkiummel.com.