Mary Ozbolt
I beg the moon & her craters
to hold a sign in the ears of the bull
& creep you out the blessed trail.
May your toes curl & shred
my esophagus only a little longer
burning cayenne sunpools.
Lift your cheek to the brim
of the cup of my palm
stretch out your arm, poke
a hole in the balloon.
Kick your name against my intestines
in farewell, cleave your beating
heart to mine,
slip the noose from your belly
lick your finger
hold it out to the breeze.
One day you will be stardust again
today you are dawn clouds
tomorrow may you be
set aflame by noon mist
from a citrus slice.
***
Mary Ozbolt received her MFA in Creative Writing from the NEOMFA program. She has been published in Ashbelt, The Bind, and Wingless Dreamer and won the Sam Ella Dukes Memorial Prize in Poetry in 2020 and 2021. She enjoys lazy Sunday afternoons with her son, partner, and two cats.