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a bitten tongue

a blank verse/language poem

By Tyler Clark (he/they)Published 6 months ago 1 min read
Winner in Things You Can’t Say Out Loud Challenge

I have a fascist fam'ly member. Fuck

if I don't wanna fly into a rage

at every nasty, hateful thing she says.

But confrontation ain't the path to peace—

//at least......... that^s what I was raised to believe..

so, at the family reunion<<>

~/ i bite my tongue{!} bad_ enough 2 need stitches;;; +

blood fills my mouth :::: thicker (than) words | flesh* swells /\

*wider (than) vowels ((( ? )))

s i l e n c e &/or groaning only;; -

—[eyerolling]—

"i can't speak",,,,2sayanything<red-seeing<

choking back[wards] words

UNTIL.321... ?

print "tihs siht kcuf" [::-1]

! cRaSH_ouTt !

Now everybody wants apologies

including her. I'd rather chew on glass.

My sins are pride and wrath and greed. I smoke,

I drink, I curse. I'm flawed in mind and speech.

I know my demons' names, and they know me.

I've never been a saint. If hell is real,

then let my good intentions pave the way.

I'll chill with Lucifer 'til trumpets sound.

There's something that won't change in any case:

a Nazi-sympathizing piece of shit

can kiss my heathen, hell-bound ass. If that's

including you, politely eat my farts.

For FunFree Versehumor

About the Creator

Tyler Clark (he/they)

I am a writer, poet, and cat parent from California. My short stories and poems have been published in a chaotic jumble of anthologies, collections, and magazines.

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Comments (7)

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  • Sandy Gillman5 months ago

    I could feel every ounce of that tongue-biting tension and the eventual eruption. Congrats on placing in the challenge.

  • Parvathi J5 months ago

    Wow, nailed it!.Congratulations .

  • Wooohooooo congratulations on your win! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊

  • A. J. Schoenfeld5 months ago

    Oh the intense frustration of holding back when someone else is being allowed to spew hateful remarks with no regard to the feelings of others. I felt the tension throughout this whole piece. Nicely done. Congratulations on your well deserved win! Hope the $200 tempers the pain from chomping on your own tongue.

  • Rachel Deeming6 months ago

    My tongue too shows the wounds of suppression. Good for you for raging. And the apology? Mmm...will you do it to gather again? Or is that it? Who needs that, right?

  • Babs Iverson6 months ago

    Fun and powerful!!!❤️❤️💕

  • Oooo, this was intense and hard hitting! Loved it so much!

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