Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 17 (March 1998).
The Neen carry about in their pockets little moons,
birthsigns and if you gaze into the orbs
you see a blue sunrise
and feel odd, a little dizzy and in your head it starts,
the visions come all at once, trembling arms,
you feel hungry, your mouth large as a planet,
you roar and feel the taste of cinnamon.
You are a giant covered with warts,
Your tongue is green like the skin of a lizard,
pig eyes see everything as edible. You hypnotize
everyone who comes near you, you weep,
and trying to think makes you feel uncomfortable.
You feel when you speak you’re shouting,
and each step you take leads you away
from where you want to go.
Everyone around you looks sweet,
delicious and succulent. You hungry
as a whole generation starved for love,
you eat dirt, rocks, all taste terrible and sweet.
You feel happy, sad, but mostly hungry,
all that you yearn for swirls inside you.
You have eaten the world. *
Poem copyright ©1998 by Ernest Slyman
Home page: <http://www.geocities.com/soho/7514>
Illustration copyright ©1994-1998 by Romeo Esparrago
