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by Heather Sullivan
This is my assignment for class:
to peer into this looking glass
and see myself objectively,
or perhaps I am supposed to
discover some hidden nuance
or flaw revealed only by such
close inspection.
But this is what happens
when I remove the compact
from my pocket: instantly,
(as I knew she would) my daughter
spies the silvery disk. What’s this?
she whispers while counting
the bright smiley faces that decorate
both sides of the circle’s surface.
She pries it open with her little finger,
nail flecked with crimson glitter,
Mama, it’s a mirror
just like the one in your purse!
She prances down the hallway,
disappears around a corner,
then clomps back in her favorite pair
of my too-big platform shoes,
pink sequined sack like a cloud
of cotton candy slung over her shoulder
just so.
Her stance: balanced confidence;
her sweet brown eyes ready
to drink up the world.
Of course, I will let her keep it:
there is no sense in searching
when my reflection is already
standing before me.
Heather Sullivan is the founder of Praying Mantis Press, a nonprofit whose mission is to build community by bringing poetry to under-served populations: prisons; nursing and group homes; recovery centers, etc. In 2007, she was appointed assistant creative director of The Writers’ Circle, and also served as a panel judge for Barnes and Noble’s Maya Angelou High School Poetry Contest. Sullivan holds an MA in English and is an award-winning, published author, including First Place in Writers’ Digest’s 1999 Competition in memoir. Her work has appeared in Balancing the Tides, The Writers’ Circle’s 2008 & 2010 Anthologies, Newport Round Table’s Anthology, The Providence Journal, and She Shines. Her essay “Compassion” aired on Rhode Island National Public Radio’s This I Believe series.
photo courtesy of Sullivan
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by Pam Wilson
It seems not so long ago that women had to rely only on a Pap smear to detect cervical cancer before it reached a deadly stage. We didn’t understand what caused it or if there was anything we could do but to remind our sisters, mothers, daughters, and best friends about the importance of that annual Pap smear. Since then, we have come to understand that cervical cancer is caused by the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and, more surprisingly, that it is sexual contact that spreads this virus. We have also learned that HPV can cause cancer in males as well as females.
HPV is a common virus that is spread through sexual contact. Some HPV types can cause cancer in women and men: cervical, anal, penile, and some other forms as well. Other types of HPV cause genital warts in both women and men. Most of the time HPV shows no symptoms at all, so people don’t know they have it. Many people fight off the virus on their own and have no ill effects. There is no way to predict who will develop cancer, and who won’t. Fortunately, the Pap smear shows early signs of the virus, and follow-up treatment along with ongoing care can help prevent cervical cancer.
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positive steps for women, their children, and community
by Deborah Smith, RN
For the past 15 years, it has been my privilege (and at times my challenge) to serve as the coordinator of the Parenting In Progress program, a GED and life skills program for pregnant and/or parenting young women, age 16-21 years in Woonsocket.
September begins year 27 for this 20-hour a week program. It is housed at YWCA Northern Rhode Island. It is a signature program at YWCA, core to our mission, eliminating racism and empowering women. Since knowledge is power, the primary focus is on completion of their GED studies as a jumping off point for the realization of each young woman’s educational and career goals. However since each of our students faces many additional challenges, we offer a comprehensive curriculum aimed at preparing and empowering these young single parents to succeed as independent, contributing members of the community.
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access and knowledge are the priorities
by Joanna Brown, MD, MPH
What can I do to enhance the strengths of the young people I care for? I often ask myself this question as a health care practitioner who focuses on the well-being of teens and young adults. How can my little bit of contact with them be a positive force in helping them shape their lives?
“No aguanto,”(I can’t do it) a young woman is moaning, repeatedly. Her straight brown hair hangs down loose as she sweats, sobs, paces, sits, paces again in the simple, florally decorated room with a double bed where she soon will be giving birth. I coach her along, massaging her, doing all I can to help her through this labor with her first child. I am nearing the end of my family medicine residency training at Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island and am doing an elective at a midwifery school and birthing center. She can do it, and she does, giving birth to a beautiful baby boy.
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in her words 
