Not sure what’s more embarrassing, that at fourteen
I still lusted for stuffed animals or that mum’s target
at the claw machine was way better than mine. Precise
as threading a needle, she’d push the steel arm straight
into the heart of the stuffed pit, wait, sipping Pepsi,
hand on hip, sure as a cowboy. Once, her single turn
brought back not one but two animals. A spotted panther
and a long-tailed squirrel. Unlike their real-life avatars,
the two never escaped my sight. Mummy was 43, 44
then gone. God plucks some of us away randomly,
the priest said. Her wins tucked under my arm, returning
from Astro Mischief, I trotted ahead, curious and jealous,
asked—How is your aim so good? She shrugged, strode
to catch up, tightening her grip around my wrist.
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From Fifty Mothers by Preeti Vangani. Copyright © 2026 by Preeti Vangani. Reprinted by permission of River River Books.
Preeti Vangani
Preeti Vangani is an Indian poet & writer based in San Francisco. She is the author of Mother Tongue Apologize (2019) and Fifty Mothers (River River Books), now available for preorders. Her work has appeared in AGNI, Gulf Coast, Prairie Schooner among other places. She holds an MFA in Writing from University of San Francisco and teaches in the program.
