fire-eating tutorial

pre-sun, we used to fill 
the moon with oil & light her.

i was a rainbow in the oil.
old veins in the trees remember

what colors the first fires were.
now, we give back our dust

to the sidewalk. i broke off
a limb & used it as a oar.

cup your hands & wait
for candy.

the flood was wild & pink.
take your tongue & press it 

to the back of your teeth
like you're about to say "true."

nothing will fill you
quite like this.

sandpaper your lips until
they shine. a trip

to the back of the grocery store
to find the fire.

fire in the sink. fire eating
your friend's chest.

a mirror on the mantel 
for fire gazing. scrying 

with the sun. fire in each
eye socket. nothing to worry about.

the ashes will blow away.
the moon will fill with nectar.

your insides will bloom.
spit out a disaster. brothers

in their cassocks coughing
incense. after the throat we don't know

where citizens happen.
you knew ice cream once & it ached

all the way to your bones.
we were little icicles. little teeth.

you knew you were going
to be a mother even then.

spit & spat. the damaged dragon
selling himself for dimes. 

one moment filled to the brim
& then ghost.