The poem as blessing. The poem as contraband. The poem as Molotov cocktail. The poem as balm. The poem as napalm. The poem as a slap. The poem as kiss. The poem as curse. The poem as revelation. The poem as revolution.
The poem as Sunday church supper. The poem as the lash and the Underground Railroad. The poem as firebrand. The poem as fiery cross. The poem as poema. The poem as child labor. The poem as striker. The poem as eight hour day.
The poem as panhandler. The poem as shopkeeper sweeping the street. The poem as check-out line cashier. The poem as hotel maid. The poem as computer nerd.
The poem as hunger. The poem as cornbread. The poem as pozole. The poem as char siu. The poem as fry bread. The poem as thirst. The poem as wine. The poem as cool water. The poem as the taste of blood.
The poem as runaway. The poem as assassin. The poem as shooting gallery. The poem as garter belt. The poem as liquor burn. The poem as knife-cut. The poem as splitting the take. The poem as the payoff.
The poem as saint. The poem as sinner. The poem as silence. The poem as a cry in the dark.
The poem as sleeping in on Saturday morning. The poem as be-bop. The poem as something found. The poem as something broken.
The poem as a way in. The poem as a way out. The poem as Hallelujah. The poem as Baruch Hashem. The poem as Salaam Aleikum. The poem as red brick dust. The poem as holy water. The poem as cabrona. The poem as patrician. The poem as puta madre.
The poem as sanctuary. The poem as cemetery. The poem as battlefield. The poem as the bed you sleep in.
The poem as left hook. The poem as right upper cut. The poem as knockout. The poem as getting off the mat. The poem grabbing you by the throat. The poem grabbing you by the balls. The poem watching you fall. The poem watching you sleep. The poem as your dreams. The poem as just another day.
