say your body is yours until  

the words hurt your mouth 

then say it again 

expand on the thought  

like sweet milk and tamarind  

twisting the tongue 

trace the roundness of your shoulders  

watch the curve 

slip in and out of the rest of you 

remind yourself you didn’t choose them 

and choosing what to do about them 

doesn’t make you any less than 

a chorus or garden or thing that is whole 

whispering dumb ass songs  

don’t do a thing for no body 

unbutton yourself and feel them on your chest 

let that heavy combat the weight  

encrusted inside 

chew a raisin and imagine it’s a nipple 

bite hard and slow and taste the pain 

that squeezes out  

hold them and wonder why you’re struggling 

with a thought made of milk  

and sweet things 

hold them and wonder what it means  

for any part of you to become smaller 

than it has to be