A Poem Smells Like

[a response to a poetry challenge]


a poem smells like...
maple syrup
splattered on momma's milk buttered Tuesday morning's flapjacks
usually a Saturday special
this mid-week treat done just to see the smile of her child

a poem smells like...
a lover's cum melded between index and pointered digits
etched in phallangic folds of love's lust memory foam

a poem smells like...
timid revenge masquerading as control
molten lava emotions
creating pinguid playmates for childhood antics

...writing continues despite...

a poem smells like...
the aftercry of an adolescent soul
knowing the full price for decisions made

a poem smells like...
summer's end
falling into new semesters of old lessons
class sessions of malarkful happenstance
only crediting regurgitated knowledge

a poem smells like...
an odoriferous lullaby
the sullen serenade
of wishes and dreams from the breast plate of a newborn mother

...and writing continues despite...