Thursday, October 06, 2005

from 10 Things You Don't Know About Me

My bush is huge. The size of a dinner plate.

Every year, thousands of blue-eyed couples
name their daughters after me.

I have a hole in the sole of my left foot
that weeps pus and smells of roses. The one
time I tried to show it to a nurse she fainted.

I was not put on this earth for your amusement.

Since I had the face of a WASP angel as a child,
my older friends used me to smuggle drugs in
from Canada. I was propositioned by large sad
policemen at the border, but never searched.

The first and second time I cried. And punched
the guy in the mouth. I hit like a girl.

When I open my legs, swallows fly out. They
smell musty, like they've been tied up in a box.

I need to take a large black gleaming pill at 9PM
to sleep at night. This pill has nothing in common
with a gun.

I knew your mother when she was slim-hipped
and bright-haired, before she met your father.
She has always regretted having you.

6 comments:

Ivy said...

Compelling, Christine. :-)

Radish King said...

Oh damn, I love this. LOVE THIS.

Radish King said...

I want to give this to the workshop I teach. The assignment will be 10 things etc. I'd like to use your poem as a sample poem of how it should be done, if that's ok.

Michael A. Wells said...

Damn... I wish I had written that. Ok, not exactly that way :)

You do realize of course that you have a bottomless pit of talent.

Christine E. Hamm, Poet Professor Painter said...

Ivy -- Thanks, Ivy! I'm so glad you commented on a piece again.

Rebecca --

"I want to give this" -- Hmm. I don't know, giving away poetry for free, could start a bad precedent. Okay, you can use it, but each student has to pay 50 cents. They can throw it into a fountain or give to a homeless person or add it on to a tip, but they have to pay!

(And thanks, I'm very flattered!)


Michael -- Oh, I forget to get back to you about your book! I've read many of the poems, and they're lovely, really! that cover is going to be tricky.

and thanks!

Aleah Sato said...

Forceful and lovely.