Marilyn: Norma Jeane Screaming
Rent from DeepDyve- Marilyn: Norma Jeane Screaming
Marilyn: Norma Jeane Screaming
Mother went stark raving and had to go away. All hopped up onyou know what! They took her to a Home. I bit the man on the leg; I was a wolf; I had teeth. How old was I then—little Norma Jeane? A channel opened in my throat: burnt sienna, raw umber—the Crayolas of pain. Screaming was breathing; if I stopped, I’d die. Dolls don’t scream, dolls can’t open their mouths, Gracie said. Shoved that wigless thing in my face. Varnished eyelashes, eyes that never shut. Quit that caterwauling, you’re not the only kid in theworld with troubles. Shame, shame. Bourbon-basted foster Daddy. Grabbed me by the arm and dragged me to the mirror—How old was I then? Seven? Eight? You’re the child of Satan all right, he said. Lookie there. I had a star the color of strawberries under my right eye. The devil snuggled up real close and put his tongue on you, girl, and left his mark. Left his goddamn sizzle spot on you, Norma Jeane. [End Page 99]
Dale M. Kushner is the founder of The Writer’s Place, a literary center in Madison, Wisconsin. Her newest poetry manuscript, “More Alive Than Lions Roaring,” was a finalist for the May Swenson Poetry Award at Utah State Press and the Dorsett Prize for Poetry. She is currently in the process of selling her debut novel, “The Conditions of Love.”
