i curl night sky
painted toes underfoot
so the other kids won't see
socks off at the audition
for interpretive dance troupe
i slalom, tumble
wrestle a phantom beach ball
i run the ekg of an erratic heart
echoing the arrhythmia
of palpitating fear
isolation, dysmorphia
the kids do or do not see my toes
but they see me dance
the polish chips away
i quit the troupe
at the suggestion of my peers
that i am gay
i tell my parents
i've reached a creative impasse
unable to embody my spirit animal
all of it tumbling to those last 3 lines....such gravitas of being a kid <3
ReplyDeleteI dont know much about gravitas but I really liked this: "i run the ekg of an erratic heart/echoing the arrhythmia/of palpitating fear/isolation, dysmorphia" For me captured by pace the medical metaphor. Cool.
ReplyDeleteI re-read this. Where's the elephant that's why I read it in the first place, I'm thinking about it. You must have hidden it somewhere? The narrator?
ReplyDeletemy spirit animal :)
ReplyDelete