When I was small my mom
would lie on the couch on
Sunday afternoon with a cloth
over her eyes and listen to the
symphony on the radio. This
made me uneasy: mothers
shouldn’t lie down with their
eyes closed. The domestic
ship might run aground with no
one at the tiller and who, who
was taking care of me? There
was obviously a power here,
filling the room, to make her
behave like this. Later, I learned
very well what that power is!
2026 Jacqueline Jackson
This article appears in April 23-29, 2026.
