Grasping Mysteries by Jeannine Atkins

Author:Jeannine Atkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published: 2020-08-03T16:00:00+00:00

Creating Paths Through Space

Katherine Johnson

(1918–2020)

Prophecy

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WEST VIRGINIA, 1924

Katherine counts eggs she gathers in the chicken coop.

She counts peaches gently placed in a basket,

counts not just spoons but the beat of their clatter.

She crouches to listen to a cricket.

She loves best what she can’t count:

raindrops, leaves rustling into a chorus,

stars blinking in and out of sight over the hills.

In church, Katherine counts girls with braids,

women wearing hats, and men with shut eyes

who may be dozing. At school, her hand splits

the air as she asks what no one else wonders.

She’s sent straight from second grade to fifth.

Her teacher’s look lasts long, as if she sees

not just the girl but who she might become.

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