The Making of A Witch

The Making of A Witch

written by: Sandi Leibowitz

Here, under this pointed hat,
is hate.
Here, from the gloom of this black cloak,
an ember glows
red and ready to burn.

The wife abandoned.
The daughter raped by her father.
The householder cheated, farmstead stolen.
The crone kicked and beaten,
and driven from the street.

You’re right to fear me.
Every wrong you’ve done me
I’ve poured into my cauldron,
where it’s simmered long.

Here, too, is strength.
It propels my athame
as if it were a sword.
It turns my wand
into a club.

Here is power.
You silenced me.
Now my incantations
thicken the air
like a throng of bats.
You hold your weak hands
against your ears and scream.

You starved me
and my hunger grew.
It has legs now, and wings,
and teeth.

You shut me in the dark.
Now I own the night.

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• About
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Sandi Leibowitz

Sandi Leibowitz, author of Ghost Light, Eurydice Sings and The Bone-Joiner, writes speculative poetry and fiction that may be found in Trouvaille Review, Verse-Virtual, Metaphorosis, Liminality, and other magazines and anthologies. Her poems have won second- and third-place Dwarf Stars, and been nominated for Elgin, Rhysling, Pushcart Prize, and Best of the Net awards. She founded and edits Sycorax Press, a micropress devoted to mythic poetry, and the related online magazine, Sycorax Journal. Her children’s poetry and stories appear in magazines worldwide; her children’s book, Magotu and the Leopard, has been published by Library for All. She lives in a raven’s wood next door to bogles in NYC.

Latest posts by Sandi Leibowitz (see all)

• The Making of A Witch - December 5, 2020
• The Cat Accursed - October 21, 2020