Hyperglossia [he ceased . . .]
he ceased
to exist as a boy
became an appellation
filed away embedded hairs of a chin
now hearsay of hyperglossia
my eyes are dyed blue
my breast
plate protects
a spool adversary’s nail was lodged
in my skull these roots won’t work
said the cook changed the
valance spooked form
of panther ran
Copyright Credit: Stacy Szymaszek, “[he ceased . . .]” from Hyperglossia. Copyright © 2009 by Stacy Szymaszek. Reprinted by permission of Litmus Press.
Source: Hyperglossia (Litmus Press, 2009)