161. CARMELITA BORANO MORANDI

CARMELITA BORANO MORANDI
(all those virgin births)
She broke water at two am. The baby was born
by three. Nothing sensational about that, I was told.
Virgin births and all the rest happen once or twice
every so often; especially in the Hispanic tradition.
I wasn't aware of that, actually. My last trip in
to Philadelphia, I'd scouted around the moraine
just to watch the Spanish girls pass - but there
weren't any left. They'd all gone away.
'Mostly they join the Army now,' Dr. Wedgewood
had said, 'they like being around all those boys
and they really like the benefits - money, pensions,
health and dental, and - let's not forget - the boys.
That's where most of these new virgin births occur.
Don't know, it sure beats me.' I'd figured a crusty
old doctor like he was should know more than that.
So I pressed. 'What makes them want that? And what
about the killing? And why aren't they just too small?'
My pictured image was of some five foot little girl
up to her neck in trouble. Bullets, boys and brawn.
Virgin births, my ass.