Rachel Armes-McLaughlin

I relish in the evenings
like this, when

after a busy
and not always easy
day, we come home
and the neighborhood
kittens have come out
to play –

we go chirp at them,
then head toward our
front door, but before

we can even reach it
we smell the stew –
like a warm aura
around our home –
that we put on
hours before.

We eat.
We water our plants.

We find good fortune:

Milkweed assassin nymphs
on our pothos friend.

And I hope –

I hope, hope, hope
these memories
shape your core,
my sweet child.

Love, Ma

Rachel Armes-McLaughlin has written poetry for nearly 25 years. Her work is published in The Chaos Section Poetry Project, where she currently assists as co-editor; in venues such as Loblolly Press, Middle Mouse Press, and Medicine and Meaning; in a Central Arkansas
Library System anthology; and elsewhere, with one poem nominated for Best of the Net and another nominated for a 2025 Pushcart Prize. Rachel lives in the very red state of Arkansas with her husband, Jack; daughter, Isabelle; and four cats. You can find her on BlueSky at @mother-poet.bsky.social.

This poem appeared in What We Hold On To: Poems of Coping, Connection, and Carrying On — Winter 2026, published by The Chaos Section Poetry Project. We’ll be featuring each poem from the collection individually in the weeks ahead. You can read the full collection or download a free PDF of the chapbook here.