Teeth scrape bitter leaves,
tongue away the gel across your teeth
smile
offer up a steamed heart
pierced
on the tip of your fork
so temptingly vulnerable
easy to rip between grinning canines
gnash
between grind mill molars
pick another
pull at the leaves
swallow the good stuff whole
put the bones in compost.
Stick your hand
back in the pot.
Evaluate the feast,
drop the fork.
Your hands steam
welted
relentless
prying still
fingering the supple fruit,
searching for relief in its juice.
You glance across the table over a porcelain plate
empty and
wanting
smoldering itself
with desire.
An appetizer
before the main course.
About the Creator
sleepy drafts
a sleepy writer named em :)
Reader insights
Outstanding
Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!
Top insights
Easy to read and follow
Well-structured & engaging content
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
Excellent storytelling
Original narrative & well developed characters
Heartfelt and relatable
The story invoked strong personal emotions
Keep reading
More stories from sleepy drafts and writers in Poets and other communities.
Standing While Falling
Quotation from Friedrich Nietzsche "He who wrestles long with monsters should beware lest he himself become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. Man is not destroyed by suffering, but by the meaning he makes of it."
By LUCCIAN LAYTH5 days ago in Critique
Comments (14)
outstanding and pure
An edible experience enshrined in poetic excellence! Masterfully done!
Beautiful poem with plenty of layers to peel apart. And now I want artichokes!
Your hands steam welted relentless prying still fingering the supple fruit, searching for relief in its juice. Not me thinking of entirely something else while reading these lines 🤣🤣🤣 Also, I've never had artichokes before. So the bones and heart, are they actual parts of the artichoke? Loved your poem!
So well done!
This is my favorite artichoke poem! I love artichoke hearts. Not as much a fan of heartbreak. Well done, Em!
A microcosm in an artichoke heart. Deftly done!
Love the tactile imagery that brings it to life...Good job!
Damn, Em, this is beautiful. Love artichoke hearts and love the analogy as others have said. Very clever and just with that sheen of brilliance that you bring to everything you pen!
Beautiful analogy. The juxtaposition of self awareness and self defeat presented in the body pairs perfectly with the sense of promise in the face of crippling loneliness conveyed in the last few lines. Delectable.
Pretty inventive writing wise and cool.
Very clever using the act of eating artichoke hearts as in an analogy for heartbreak. Well done, as usual good work!
Mmmm! Love artichoke hearts.
Beautifully captures the complexity of heartbreak and the journey towards healing and self-discovery.I loved it.