The VOICE JOURNAL
Rants. Plus poems about rage, motherhood, politics, grief, awakening and the refusal to be quiet. New work posted as it happens. Read, share, feel something.
Treat Women Like Shit And They’re Not Going To Have Your Babies
England and Wales, 1.41 children per woman, the lowest since 1938. Korea, 0.8. Two thirds of the world below replacement. Women everywhere, at the same time, saying no. This is why, and who's panicking.
The Experiment That Never Happened
Healthy men made to live a mother's routine broke in thirty days, the post said, and not one could talk about his wife the same way again. None of it happened. The real numbers have been there for decades.
You Can Have It All
They told us we could have it all. The career, the kids, the spotless house, the lot. It was never an offer. It was a workload dressed up as freedom. Here's the con, and what I'm doing about it.
The Rucksack
There’s a rucksack I carry.
Invisible, but heavy.
It wasn’t packed in one go,
just a slow, relentless loading.
Not days or months,
but years of collecting…
She Wiped The Glitter Off
She’d just come off stage.
A matinee performance.
Still had her makeup on-
bright eyeshadow, thick lashes,
tiny diamantés stuck to her cheekbones.
She was proud…
The Hair Stays Up
I got a compliment last week.
“You look amazing,” she said.
I smiled, thanked her,
said it was just my hair,
washed, dried,
worn down for once…
There’s no spreadsheet for this feeling
It’s 7:44am. I’m already tired. There’s one odd sock again. Never two. Who knows where that other one goes. There’s grated cheese on the floor and a child saying, “Can I go on the iPad now?” before I’ve even finished wiping the tears from that video of a mother in Gaza digging her baby out of rubble…