POEM

There is no wheat in this poem,
no barley, rye or derivatives thereof.
I can't say why, but it doesn't involve any sort of nut. Cross contamination
is not an issue here. These words are
100% safe to eat.
There is longing, though. And heat.
A phantonm crumb lingers on the tongue,
buttered with hyngry eyes. Jam sticky lust
licks it finger and thumb, some sugar
to swallow down with the losses.
One in 132 poets experience the urge
to fondle dinner rolls, swoon at the sight of a battered-cotten spoon,
slow walk past the patisserie,
breathe from the knees
sweet burnt air to last a livetime.
While these lines contain absolutely no lactose,
high fructose corn syrup, casein, or genetivcslly modified ingredients.
they do possess a prayer,
a memory, a wish, the taste
of every forbidden dish.
Published in Alimentum, The Literature of Food (Winter 2010)