Fancy o Sick (or: A Brief History of My Innards)
Experimental poem. A surreal autopsy of obsession, love, and bodily memory โ equal parts curse, confession, and comedy.
dirt dirt stained grained
she spins me round,
ingrained and restrained
like a rotisserie chicken
derailed, resailed
in a dirty, rat-infested
impaled impala tala dala
low dining establishment
mulato delato dignitaries
that does not have an updated health inspection pass
-
dignitaries delato mulato
She makes me feel
dala tala impala impaled
like I am riding a wurly-bird
resailed, derailed
without functioning legs or I am
restrained and ingrained
grained stained dirt dirt
-
sick sick sick sick sick
sick o fancy sick o fancy
light prance shift dance
stem cell deviancy regency
-
regency deviancy cell stem
dance shift prance light
fancy o sick fancy o sick
sick sick sick sick sick
-
I want this to burn burn
in your mind, your heart
deep down, in your soul
wake and sweat, remember
-
remember, sweat and wake
soul your in, down deep
heart your, mind your in
burn burn to this want I
-
sword pointed downwards
downwards inwards
forwards towards
innards, passed sinew
surprised? but you knew.
*
Thanks for reading!
Author's Notes: Experimental. A curse. A confession. A comedy. A whole lot that means a lot whole lot.
Here are some other things:
About the Creator
Paul Stewart
Award-Winning Writer, Poet, Scottish-Italian, Subversive.
The Accidental Poet - Poetry Collection out now!
Streams and Scratches in My Mind coming soon!
Reader insights
Outstanding
Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!
Top insights
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
Excellent storytelling
Original narrative & well developed characters
Eye opening
Niche topic & fresh perspectives
Heartfelt and relatable
The story invoked strong personal emotions
On-point and relevant
Writing reflected the title & theme
Masterful proofreading
Zero grammar & spelling mistakes
Easy to read and follow
Well-structured & engaging content


Comments (5)
This "rotisserie chicken" image definitely burned into my mind. Every time I read it the poem comes with a slightly different meaning to me. I like your experiments :D
An experiment and a hit, I must say, Paul. I kinda took it as though it was how the heart would speak if you gave it a mouth. Everything would come pouring out in a sort of convoluted, all-at-once mess because of how much it feels. (not saying your poem is a mess!! It has structure and depth, and I'm sure I'm missing a lot of its meaning, lol).
Well, the poem is brilliant as always, Paul, but that image is burned into my head
Consider it burned! Very memorable (and sometimes disturbing) lines! "rotisserie chicken" and "rat-infested" certainly caught my attention. A pleasure as always to read your experimental pieces!
Yeah, this is dope. You have such a fun experimental style with words that always hooks me. I love that I can read and re-read your work. Loved this!