If you find out your father was not
your father, do you fall off the family
tree like a red leaf that turns to ground
as if you could unlove all the ancestors
whose name you bear, the grandmother who wrote
you a lullaby, the white-haired aunt who whispered
dreams, the gorgeous uncle who died young?
Where do you put their voices before you
have nothing new to hear? Are they still yours
or must they be undone, unremembered,
your first father’s paintings unhung?
Robin Dellabough is a poet, editor, and writer with a master’s degree from UC Berkeley School of Journalism. A founding partner at Lark Productions: A Book Company, she has written, edited and contributed to more than sixty books, including The Poets’ Corner. Her current position is Projects Director, Publishers Marketplace/Publishers Lunch, for which she curates samplers of forthcoming books and manages editorial events.
© 2020, Robin Dellabough
Halfway Down the Stairs 