My uncle literally tried to whip

The gay away from me

With an emblem of faith grown on russet soil

He held a palm branch

Which, with its evergreen leaves

Symbolized victory, eternal life in Catholic tenets

And peace, even peace

But it did not bring me peace

I stared at him, curious

Stunned

Silenced

As the leaves touched my body

It was not a violent act

It was far from one

But it, in a way

Wounded me

I was 15 then

I was 15 also

When he stopped my father

From further strangling me

My father shouted

“You’re a girl! Be like a girl!”

His hands on my neck

My back pushed to a wooden closet

My uncle came rushing in

And cried out my father’s name

As he tried to remind him

“She’s still your daughter!”

Those words

Brought me peace

That any other palm branch never could

Cover image by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash