International literary magazine on art, culture, and society from the young left.

If God gave me this mouth, why shouldn’t I use it

Alyssa Curcio

It’s funny and kind of famous
to be uninvited from
your close friend’s wedding.
I should know, seeing as how
the minute-long bubbles of
my unsolicited online thoughts
(of my body politick, perhaps)
wounded the feelings of
the soap-soft groom
deeply enough that he could not
enjoy his Big Day knowing I was
lurking somewhere
in the pews.

If God gave me this
mouth,
why shouldn’t I use it!

Over breakfast, I told my dad
he needed to start
seeing the State for what it is:
a godless warmonger hungry for flesh.
Even the freshly baked muffins
didn’t help that one go over any easier.
(quelle surprise!)
We’re finally speaking again,
crystalline cracking
delicately over
newly-formed ground.

If my father gave me this
mouth,
why shouldn’t I use it!

September brought a severing,
my lover cutting me
down at the knees
because I tried to pry open
the closed fist of her heart
with my lips
(my so-called perfect lips).
Too much talk,
not enough tongue,
I guess.

If God gave me this perfect
mouth,
then why shouldn’t I use it!