lesson #27
not really choking
just cutting off
circulation
like this
she shows me
how to hold
the red bungee
just so.
she's on
her knees
in front of
a full length mirror.
i'm on
my knees
behind her.
hell of a reach
getting my hand
around her gut
down to
the coin slot.
her eyes
are closed.
feels like
i'm an iroquois
skinning a bear.
or like
i'm trying to
jerry-rig
an old
vacuum cleaner.
tighter,
she croaks.
my bicep
quivers.
beads of sweat
sprint down my forehead
into my eyes
as her face
goes squid.
then she goes limp
before erupting
like mount vesuvius
~ ~ ~
your turn
she smiles
grabbing the bungee
waving it
overhead
like the
holy cross.
* Justin Hyde lives in Iowa.
