Thursday, August 10, 2006

The Grass Eater

chewing what she pulled from

the lawn insects shickandshickandshick, pause
in the sticky weeds she licked the end of her braid

the milking shed made her faint smelling bleach and
cheese and vomit from the wet concrete the suck

suck suck of the machines metal, rubber fingers
on the cows’ tits don’t worry, they can’t feel it

heavy breath, grunt of the animals her older cousins
pinched her neck she cried stop and rubbed the bruise

drifted through the fallow field to the faucets at the
screened-in porch, knelt and put her mouth

on the iron bitter spigot with its hot water

welts rose on her calves, thighs
from some tiny thing, biting and persistent

4 comments:

Radish King said...

OHHH!

Amanda Auchter said...

I love this! Please send me more poems!

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

Thanks Rebecca.

Amanda, I will send you poems. I assume you mean for PLR?

sam of the ten thousand things said...

Fine work Christine. Fierce imagery.