Deirdre Fagan is a widow, wife, and mother of two who has published poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Most recently, her work has appeared in Constellate, Nine Muses, The Opiate, and Rat’s Ass Review. She is a Pushcart and Best of the Net nominee. Fagan teaches literature and writing at Ferris State University where she is also the Coordinator of Creative Writing.
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Butter by the Stick
As soon as something crawls from the ground,
and declares itself alive, it bites my neck.
Isn’t that how we met?
I can’t recall.
This welt, now just a bump,
is occasionally, itchy.
A dry patch of skin, arid, withered,
on the underside of my chin,
where I once held a dandelion
to determine whether I liked butter.
Yellow reflection, “yes.”
None, “no.”
You ate butter by the stick.
I was only a child, then.
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ISACOUSTIC* 