Cal Louise Phoenix

Ode To Slight

The vermillion wires of my muscles are padded
by strange, yellow bedding.

Mostly, I want to melt myself down
and bake cupcakes with the run-off.  
I would serve them to my friends, watch them eat,
and want for nothing.  Except to feel like rain.

Sometimes, I actually hug handfuls of that weird laundry
and hack them into steaks. I am reminded
of how hungry I am, but what looks like meat in the pan
springs pale shoots over the fire.
 

Cal Louise Phoenix is an undergraduate student and tutor of creative writing and sociology at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. Some of her hobbies include touring art museums, cardigan shopping, and eating cheese. Her poetry has most recently been featured in FLARE, Inscape, and seveneightfive.