Taking your hip bones from the countertop
I wish to clothe you from the linen cupboard.
Organic bamboo. Modern greys. The good stuff.
Wipe the purple jewels of dishwater guts
from your wrists. The watery blood
from your brow. My cheek an absorbent pad
against the exposed flesh of yours.
We hold the plastic tray of the kitchen floor still.
Until the oven timer cracks us in two.
I wrap the smaller part in a serviette and place it under the lip of a plate.
The larger I let you keep for good luck.
You bring it, between tongs, to your teeth and say
the marrow tastes like an ending.
Emily Crocker writes and performs poetry. You might have seen her at BAD!SLAM!, Noted Festival, Unspoken Words, StoryFest, or Word in Hand. Her debut chapbook ‘Girls and Buoyant’ was published last year by Subbed In. She is also on the team that brings you Enough Said in Wollongong, and can be found studying at the University of Wollongong.