Ziiiiine

NOT A PRESS

Little Sunny

As Mandated by the Muse

By Anita Cadena Sánchez

She rapped my knuckles then whittled her pencil 
     to conform to the contours of my hand
She tapped with impatience on the kitchen table 
      a nearly indecipherable code
Like the mysterious guiding force of an Ouija board
     across the page she led my hand

     untame your tongue
     spin the thread with twisted words
     pierce the page with a running stitch
     either French seam those lines with delicate rhymes 
     or shred the lining of politeness and 
     let it rip

How long have I scratched myself
     to satisfy this itch of words
beneath my molting skin
     this chrysalis of many moons
It’s time to break free