Martha Joy Rose

Old Photo of Pam and Joy

Friends to the Bitter End

The audience is riled up, rocking its way towards midnight. I am standing on the stage with a microphone in my hand. The band plays behind me. I shout out over the noise, eager to keep going. “I don’t look sick, do I?” I ask, shaking my head and nodding to the crowd. “No, no, no,” they shout back. Turning to my keyboard player, signaling for her to begin the intro, “One, two, three,” I count, as my fingers strum guitar strings. I have been performing my entire adult life. Now, standing in the club, aptly titled The Bitter End, I have bargained my way out of the hospital to perform this gig....

Martha Joy Rose

Martha Joy Rose is a scholar, artist, and activist. She founded the Museum of Motherhood (MOM) in NYC, relocated to St. Petersburg, Florida in 2017, and continues to host exhibits and education devoted to elucidating the art, science, and history of mothers. She is currently socially-distanced due to COVID.