maybe
you shouldn’t
have left college
married that man
had that man’s kids
ditched that man’s kids
maybe
you shouldn’t
have drunk that beer
smoked that cigarette
bought that razor
listened to daddy
they say
fate brings a
silver lining
they say find it
you know dark clouds
are your fortune
but maybe
they’re right
maybe
you’ll get
yours in
the end
Ruth Nasrullah is a freelance journalist who has been published in Azizah, Religion News Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine, The Trek, Toastmaster, Houston Chronicle, The Lily, MuslimMatters, Islamic Horizons, and more. In 2021, she won the Howard S. Dubin Outstanding Pro Member award from the Society of Professional Journalists. She has an MA in journalism from Emerson College and an MFA in creative nonfiction from Goucher College.
