by Mateo Lara

Splintering from under the hot water
worry sizzling off the tongue
Pulsed and popped
vessel of iron, swelling crimson
Packet of rawness, light burst
A sinew of purified perfection
Imperfection of the body
Holy Spirit vomited up, after-birth
A womb cut open for a queer boy
Unhappy mother
Unpraised sun
Ungodly mouth
Sound reversed
Unwound like wire
Around throat
Burning token
of our celestial
Worst years
Separated
Sweetened
Together
Clasped
Clapping
& Bound
Dissolving.

Mateo Lara

Mateo Lara is queer & latinx, originally from Bakersfield, California. He received his B.A. in English at CSU Bakersfield. He is currently working on his M.F.A. in Poetry at Randolph College in Lynchburg, VA. His poems have been featured in Orpheus, EOAGH, Empty Mirror, and The New Engagement. He is an editor for RabidOak online literary journal & Zoetic Press

Artist: Chris Bracey