An American Fugue Of Neon Brain Matter, BD Salvas

I am the eurythmy dancer in the yellow wallpaper

A disfigured field of poppies and rue

Where the sacred deer

Goes feral only for a second

Seeing his coquettish reflection

Before the firing of pneumatic brain cells

I am the reflective artist in the pantomime box

Amber hair and too much tobacco

Smudged strategically

In the shape of clown eyes

Who has sucked the macrame dry

Unrefined sugar wilting across paisley convergences

And I am the feverish pair of glass blown lungs

In a droll sense of panic

In a retching state of ennuie

Intangible compendium in

The eye of a needle warped magnificently by flames

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BD Salvas is a Black poet from Southern California. She uses her experiences as a Black queer person to write about sex, love, trauma, and nature. When she isn’t writing poetry, BD is likely to be analyzing classical literature or watching anime. Twitter: @BethDimanche