On August 5, 2010, the Senate confirmed the nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. She will be the 112th person to serve on the Court, and the 4th woman. The Rumpus is happy to mark this occasion with a poem by Dawn Trook.

Elena Wears the Robe

She was plucked for her pluck,
kept her eye on this spot,
arriving into the role
she was born to fashion.
While teenage girls feathered and fit
new bodies into satin, Elena dressed
the part she’d fill only many years after.
Using reason and wit for right, her
Rabbi couldn’t deny the force of her
threshold. She’ll re-make our takes
on Christmas and the use of cigars.
She’s justice, and we’re all
a-tremor waiting to see which of our truths
she wears under her new robe.

— Dawn Trook

Dawn Trook teaches writing at the University of California, Merced and art at the Merced County Juvenile Correctional Facility. She plays bass guitar for the band Mercytown.

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