There Will Be a Reunion
Poem by Kelsey Bigelow
It’s National Poetry Month and also National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and my friend and fellow Iowa Writers’ Collaborative member Kelsey Bigelow wrote this inspired poem. I’m a big fan of Kelsey’s poetry, especially her artistic works in the mental health area.
She graciously allowed me to share it here.
THERE WILL BE A REUNION
For the forgotten statistics
The 2023 Child Maltreatment report issued from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shows that the majority of children referred to CPS were kept in their homes.
This is for the kids growing into numbness
The kids building forts around their personalities
and moats around their treehouses
The kids who slurp spaghetti to the sound of door slams
and fall asleep to screaming lullabies
I promise there can be more to your life
than table scars on your temple
more than crying under covers
more than braving their anger every day
I know the adults around you
even the ones with clipboards
aren’t capable of giving you joy or justice
But you will give it to yourself one day
You will re-discover your desire to dance in the rain
as you develop a life that dreams with you
You will realize your youth did not die
despite your lifetime of suppression
You simply stored your spirit in your pocket
and will let it warm you in time
I wish I could promise
you will never relive the shoves and scrapes
But there will be a reunion
between your mind and heart
that you will be strong enough to welcome
You will learn to the let the memory be just a memory
Not a proper noun in your name that forms you
Not permanent décor on your own walls
Not more than just a scar on your skin
You will rehome yourself in time
I promise you can
because I am writing to you
from a home that has never met a slam or shove or scream
from a home that is mine
from a home that finally hugs me back
Kelsey Bigelow is a poet and speaker based in Des Moines. She spends her time working as a mental health poet sharing this therapeutic tool with audiences of all ages across the world. She is the author of four poetry projects, including her latest book “Far From Broken.” Her work is published with several small presses and journals. Kelsey is a 2024 Pushcart Prize nominee, a 2023 Button Poetry Video Contest Finalist, and a 2023 Central Avenue Poetry Prize finalist. As a performer, Kelsey has worked with organizations such as The Mayo Clinic, NAMI, Planned Parenthood, and more. Videos of her work can be found on Button Poetry, Write About Now, Ghost Poetry Show, and elsewhere.
She’s the founder of the Des Moines Poetry Workshop, the chair for the Iowa Poetry Association Poetry Slam, a teaching artist in the Des Moines community, a director for the BlackBerry Peach National Poetry Slam, and a founding member of the 2025 io-what poetry slam team.
“There Will Be a Reunion” was originally published on 4/14/2026 in her Substack column There’s a Poem In That. Click to subscribe and support her work!
Kelsey is also a fellow instructor with me at the annual Okoboji Writers and Songwriters’ Retreat. Registration now open!
"There will be a reunion between your mind and heart..." What a powerful and beautiful poem, Kelsey. Thank you, Kali, for sharing it.
Devastatingly beautiful