the nurse men
Pulled in two
He called me and my friend Rebecca to the fence that enclosed the playground. I was eight and he seemed really old to me. He smiled and winked, opened his hand and said, Want some Tootsie Rolls? I thought of my lunch that I had made for myself, a heel of bread folded in half with butter and a wilted pickle. I eyed the Tootsie Rolls, thinking how I loved the mild, slightly chewy chocolate flavor. Rebecca ran away, and hesitating, I grabbed the candy and ran back to her as I stashed one of the pieces into my pocket.
”It’s poisoned!” she yelled at me. Shamed by her certainty I threw away the piece in my hand. The rest of the day, I fidgeted in class as I fondled the Tootsie’s outside waxy paper, while twisting and untwisting the ends I imagined the chocolate on my tongue and my stomach grumbled it’s inclination. Running home from school, I pictured my death by poison and my parent crying at my funeral. I let myself into our house and stood in the quiet doorway, I unwrapped the Tootsie Roll, examined it and pulled it in two.
Auriga charioteer in search of Hippodamia
I’m excited to be exhibiting at Select Art Fair this year, May 13 -17th, located at Center 548 (DIA Building) in Chelsea, New York City.
Star of Celestial Meadows
Marfark
if not winter, no pain
spangled is the earth with her crowns
