Good Dang
Lullabies in my head
humming while by myself
while you’re upstairs
in your magic suit
two sizes too big for you
I know you’ll grow into it.
All the busyness
addressing us like we’re important
something I’m still getting used to
and you’re dang good
at being cute, cause you’re used to it
and when we went
to the mirror three days ago
and we watched each other’s eyeballs
you recognized yourself as one of those
fleshy masses morphing into shapes blurring
and good dang I was exhilarated
you recognizing yourself.
Not a Whip
When she learned to smile
beyond pure bodily reaction
I wanted to freeze the air.
Used to her yearnings
I await her laughter to join
so mine can increase,
her voice to discover rhythm
fingers their convenience
taste introduced to salt and cheese
carrots and cucumbers
and the menagerie of our garden.
Will she learn I am not a saint
but not a whip, merely
a man living with her
in the same messy world-
as her distinctions grow like cracks
in glass will she shatter
will she be the disappointing one
or will I, or will we share that title
after reconciliation,
or will we be among the lucky ones?
Princess
I’ll never consider you a princess
unless you marry a prince,
because I believe in a world
kinder than ignorant falsities-
one which understands princesses
are forced to feign affection,
forced to forgo their emotion
for the profit of formulation,
and I am arrogant enough to foresee
it hurting me more than you
when you mature to forget
you ever cared, but the stinger
leaving poison in my affection –
tickling periodically as I consider
you controlled verses independent,
forgetting you hold your sword
and slice your moments
like grilled pineapple, reminds
my country-seeking heart
that a flower flourishing
in a filthy gully is yet more beautiful
than a princess pretending
there are no young ladies picking
up their buckets full of pig shit,
hauling it over to the valley,
tossing it in pride knowing that
that toss signifies a cleanliness
you’ll never experience, even
if you marry a goddamned prince.
–Maxwell Redder
