Sarah Yost
Transubstantiation
there is little glory
under this high holy host
the silent eye of the moon
tethered here by a tiny pincer
your body floats just above
your dull ache, the child
that grows steadily
in your arms will
wrest away from you
in time the distance
between you will expand
the space between earth
& moon to an unheard
sigh in a quiet night
when you are no longer
called for—you too ate
of your mother here
in this worn wicker chair
the white paint yellowed
& peeling here her body
became your body
your neurons cutting
new unseen starscapes
of the unknown
world within you
young cells dividing
ancient atoms
collecting anew
—you too desire
dessication to fill
a thirsty cup & bare
your tender flesh
ever fortified
by the lolling blue
eye that does not see
what you’ve given &
the cold empty sky
that has always
swallowed sacrifice
under this high holy host
the silent eye of the moon
tethered here by a tiny pincer
your body floats just above
your dull ache, the child
that grows steadily
in your arms will
wrest away from you
in time the distance
between you will expand
the space between earth
& moon to an unheard
sigh in a quiet night
when you are no longer
called for—you too ate
of your mother here
in this worn wicker chair
the white paint yellowed
& peeling here her body
became your body
your neurons cutting
new unseen starscapes
of the unknown
world within you
young cells dividing
ancient atoms
collecting anew
—you too desire
dessication to fill
a thirsty cup & bare
your tender flesh
ever fortified
by the lolling blue
eye that does not see
what you’ve given &
the cold empty sky
that has always
swallowed sacrifice
Biography
Sarah Yost writes poems, teaches, and serves in public education in Louisville, Kentucky, where she lives with her husband and two young children. Her poems have appeared in literary journals, such as Eclectica and The Orange Room Review, and will appear in the forthcoming Issue 32 of La Piccioletta Barca. Her nonfiction writing has appeared in The Washington Post, Edutopia, The Courier-Journal, Education Week, The Standard, and elsewhere. Find her on Twitter @SarahYost1 and Instagram @sarahyost.
|