Thistle

Thistle was written over four years as Yaffa supported a sibling through stage 4 cancer. A collection of poems encompassing the multitude of layers in grief, loss, caretaking, and family. The collection offers glimpses into the humanity in caretaking, the love family share, the conflict that arises, and the healing that sometimes pulls us apart. Thistle honors that as we care for one another the world does not stop and systems of oppression continue thriving. Written as COVID rages, as the genocide in Falasteen escalates, and as countless others are lost in the process. This collection speaks to all of us that have experienced caring for and/or losing a loved one and the different ways in which that grief can manifest.