espnW will publish a bi-weekly poem on Sundays. This week, Ellen Hagan recites her tribute to USA women's basketball player Diana Taurasi.
#Make&BreakThe Rules
for Diana Taurasi
Watch the way she works. Lean, shift, hustle, throw,
every meticulous muscle on the body magnetic -- magic
each jump shot an exclamation mark, marking moves
every whoosh & arc, each three- point hallelujah
elicits collective Yes Yeses from the crowd -- kiss
the competition, watch the way she shine shines.
& makes it work & marks the pass & plays the game
& shakes the floor & makes the score & wins it all,
every time. Collect the spotlight in her spins, catch
the light on her rings, watch her team rise up -- a galaxy
surrounds her. Dance, shake, shoulder bump, break
bump light across the floor & watch the way they work.
Pass slide, catch her eye, pass & groove. We got this
& yes we make the rules & yes we score the wins & yes
we break the rules when we want, cause they're ours. This,
the work it takes to captivate. Her work ethic - endless
her body -- steady/strong. Her spirit -- relentless. Watch her
rise. The early morning workouts, the weights, drills,
the lay-ups, the speed, the rush -- the way she becomes
a universe. This -- the work it takes, to be legend.
»Ellen Hagan is a Kentucky writer, performer, and educator. Her latest collection of poetry Hemisphere, was published by Northwestern University Press, Spring 2015. Ellen's performance work has been showcased at The New York International Fringe and Los Angeles Women's Theater Festival. She is the recipient of the 2013 NoMAA Creative Arts Grant and received grants from the Kentucky Foundation for Women and the Kentucky Governor's School for the Arts.