tongue fire 

every time i cut my tongue off 
it just grows right back.
the tail of a lizard. i am talking like scabby tree sap.
i'm talking like a sidewalk lighter. 
when i try to tell you why i do not want
to be the pineapple machine
all that comes out are sea gulls. i want to be
loved like sourdough bread. i want to be tucked 
into your pocket & taken to the moon.
have you ever been someone's secret?
i have. i have kissed inside an envelope.
i am have met on the side of the road 
& heard them say, "we have to be quick."
a boy in the driveway. a boy on mars. 
tell me you think of me not as an aloe plant
but as a violet or a lily. tell me that you love me
even as you set fire to my tongue. there are
stories in the bible of men filling
their mouths with fire so that they could speak
to anyone who passes by. these are a story 
of how if you empty enough of yourself
anyone else can rush in. my water lovers.
my garden hose-mouthed sweet melon. 
i know you have a special box of matches 
you use just to burn your clothes 
when you get back from loving me. 
i would like to crawl into that little cardboard coffin.
have you reach inside with you plum fingers 
& lift me out. i would say, 
"go ahead. let me be your flint."