Poetry from Daryl Sznyter
first date
i left my heart in my car my heart was a car my car was exhausted
my heart was exhaust my heart was a pipe bomb
i wore sweatpants that day because my heart was dirty
my heart was cotton my cotton stank of old perfume
my heart was past its prime my heart was ugly
………………………………. .but my heart was also hungry so she decided to emerge
………………………………. .but the restaurant was closed
……………………………………………………………………….my heart was
starving
my heart was a third-world country
………………………………. .my third-world country was a starving child
…………my heart was a starving child
you fed my starving child you cooked for my starving child
………………………………. .& my heart grew greedy
my heart grew rapidly
……………………………………………………………………….my heart grew wide
………………………………. .& ready to be split
………………………………. .by your tongue
………………………………. .your tongue was a scalpel
……………………………………………………………………….you split my heart
my heart was scary my heart was scared
my heart exploded my explosion emptied
………………………………. .the earth
……………………………………………………………………….of everyone but you
………………………………. .& your heart
.
.
Daryl Sznyter is the author of Synonyms for (OTHER) Bodies (NYQ Books). Her poetry has appeared in Diode, Harpur Palate, Poet Lore, The American Journal of Poetry, Best American Poetry Blog, and elsewhere. She received her M.F.A. from The New School. She currently resides in northeastern Pennsylvania.
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