Portside

Necessary Durability

By Julie Demoff-Larson

I suppose the high wasted briefs—
Granny panties
and the boxed Playtex bras—
white thick strapped brassieres
shaping breasts like summit peaks,
tips of torpedoes—
kept hands from meandering
beneath turtlenecks and sweaters,
unlike the girls who wore tank tops and sundresses—Julie Demoff-Larson 
their thin satin straps showing,
nuzzling under lace and polyester blend,
those girls smelling of patchouli oil and sweat
just like my sister
stretched out on family living room floors
with boys they loved
with boys they devoured way too soon.
Top heavy and weighted down,
bras that were purchased for me
lifted and secured,
corrected posture to retain femininity
like the ladies who worked
the assembly line at the soap factory
coming home smelling of lard and lye
making seventy cents to his dollar—
maybe less,
god damn, they were
tough and durable
and able to get the job done.
Julie Demoff-Larson is the curator of Small Prestivus Literary Festival, a two-day fest that promotes the diversity of small presses and the writers they represent. She is a founding member of Blotterature Literary Magazine where she served as Managing Editor for three years. Julie has a B.A. in English Literature from Purdue University and is working towards teaching youth in her community. Julie’s short stories and poems are published in Mangrove, Ricochet, Epiphany Magazine, Cultural Weekly, and in anthologies Good Morning, Justice (Brine Books Publishing) and This is Poetry Volume II: The Midwest Poets. You can make friends with Julie through her Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jdemofflarson