i pity you
neither man nor beast
not even bone but
clay.
they said you’d squeal.

adam could you
spare a rib?
this is my body—
see spot
tear it limb from
limb, sinews snapping like
so many piano strings
or better yet, the wires that hold a marionette
***** as Cleopatra’s needle
they say if you lift a conch
shell to your ear
you can hear the
blood churning,
congealing upon my lips
to form newer,
martial tongues.

when you enter my belly
what you leave behind
can hardly be called
meat.