![The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature](https://r4i548.p3cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/service-pnp-fsa-8c52000-8c52800-8c52874r.jpg)
Rose Auslander – “Hurricane Irene” – A Poem
Southern Legitimacy Statement:
I’m a Louisianan, once removed, from Shreveport—where sweating in the sun in the brambles behind my step-grandma’s backyard, gathering the wild strawberries that grew there, and stealing a few from my sweaty hands, from the batches meant for jam, was the most delicious thing ever.