Many different things can inspire me to create a poetry broadside. Sometimes it's finding the perfect picture in my archives to go with a poem. Sometimes I find that picture in the collection of someone else (who gives their permission) or in the public domain.
But, in the case of my contrapuntal "Pain", my inspiration was the cover of the
International Human Rights Art Movement Literary Magazine Third Quarter 2025 edition,
Enduring Voices: Life with Disabilities, Invisible Illnesses, and Neurodivergence which includes "Pain" (on page 63).
The cover had just the right amount of space for "Pain". And so, with the permission of Managing Editor-in-Chief Lisa Zammit, I created a broadside (that also allows those who haven't purchased the journal to read my contrapuntal).
Enduring Voices' contributors captured the reality of living with various medical conditions and neurodivergence types (their own or their loved ones') with unflinching honesty and vulnerability. One of the many problems in managing medical conditions, including chronic pain, is the lack of understanding among practitioners. I sent the broadside to my primary care physician and asked her to read it. That link is now part of my medical record.
If you live with chronic pain and must navigate medical infrastructe that doesn't believe it exists (especially for those in female-coded bodies) and "Pain" speaks to you I give you permission to share the
link to the larger version of my broadside with your practitioner. (You may also print it out to take to your practitioner if you see them in person.)
