Dinner with the Arsonists
The eternal truth is;
If they’re fifteen minutes late
You can leave.
The glow of the chandelier
Paints my fingertips pinot red
But I think my times up.
Dinner with the Arsonists is a charming affair.
The fine China is all third-generation
And the stories they tell are all
Sugared nostalgia
Only doled out for special occasions.
The trick is to be grateful
While they light matches
You can’t take it too personally.
Some words are just words.
Some smiles are only reflex.
Some houses are just a box
for all your secret treasures.
You’re grown up now
aren’t you?
You don’t believe in stories,
do you?
If this is what having blood feels like, I’m out
I’m sitting very still
waiting for fireflies
but I think I’m only seeing headlights
through the gaps in the fence
the universe sure has a shitty sense of humor
and impeccable timing
remember that time
remember when
a baby possum crawled out of the garden
and waddled around our feet
it felt like being forgiven
by a tiny god.
About the artist
Samantha Hund writes uncomfortable fiction and poetry. Her work is published or forthcoming in Expat Press, Eulogy Press, BULL, Michigan City Book Review, Some Words, Blood+Honey, and others. All rumors of vampirism are unsubstantiated. samanthahund.com and @sm_hund on twitter and instagram.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE…
THIS WEEK’S HOROSCOPE by Ben Macnair
Gold Fish and 2 more by Kushal Poddar
2 by Alex Carrigan
Thirteen Ways of Looking at Anya Taylor-Joy by Damon Hubbs
Three poems by Iryna Somkina, translated by Stephan Crown-Weber
_(attributed_to)_-_Portrait_of_a_Lady_of_the_d%27Hervart_Family_with_a_Dog_on_Her_Lap_-_959494_-_National_Trust.jpg){kind=link}
Leave a Reply