Revealing Penelope
Rita Costello
I just had a revelation
I hate it when he says that
it's always so mundane
like Hey you know those bones
you suckin' clean
they used to be a vital part
of a livin' snortin' pig?
Hey
man'd I ever tell you 'bout the time
my father fed me my pet pig
Penelope
for dinner without warning
and as I was clearing the table he gurgled
Guess WHO you just ate!
with a big-hearty-boozed up laugh
that he thought was funny?
I ate her
I cried
but I grew up man
and I learned not to name my farm animals
I learned I didn't even have to live on a farm
and in the city I could buy me meat at the grocery-store
pre-packaged and un-named
and I know better than to go around having revelations
about other people's food