Poem by Ernie Nelson /
with my heart protruding from my lips
if i am to speak
do i become that which falls from my mouth
if no man can enter another’s womb
is becoming the opposite of birth
because you must kill the parts of you that plunder
you cannot come from the lips of another
you are everyday
what goodness you bring betwixt thumbs
i am entering myself
my fingers bloody with the juice of becoming
look away if you must
i’m not doing it for you
i am everyday at war with my erasure
words are the villain of ab(stin)sence
indulging is prayer and my body is a temple
my soul in their whispers
shame expelling itself my ugliness becoming
golden in the daylight
i am nothing if not holy
forever suffering for the sake of
that ache we call living
but pain is the opposite of death
cringe is the opposite of mundane
it is okay to hold two opposing gods between your teeth
by jove! make them kiss like barbies!
Ernie Nelson (he/they) is a queer, trans student from Loveland, Colorado. They’ve been writing poetry from a young age and self-published a short chapbook titled “If You Are Still” in 2021. He enjoys making oddly specific playlists and has over 542 on spotify.
