Ink : : Spirit : : Coffin : :
Buy Issue for $25 at JHUP- Ink : : Spirit : : Coffin : :
Tattoos are charms to protect us from what we fear the most
{He has a} bullet on his chestBare-knuckled bull {He has a}Rush of razor {He has a} risingSign : : Ink {a} Sigh rising {has}Ink : : {He has a} bullet on hisCross a cross on his rib a handOn his heart on his mouth onHis chest a bullet on the brain{Time is a} tense the past in his backIn his back a black man's storyA black man's story a black man'sLifeline piled atop a black man'sAtop more black men's lives thanHis back can handle {He has a}Bullet on his chest an amulet inkedOn his chest a coffin front in his mind{He has a} sign a cross : : ink on hisChest a coffin's promise a black man'sStory a history of bullets a history of notHands supporting his present {tense} [End Page 89]
Metta Sáma is author of Nocturne Trio (YesYes Bøøks, 2012) and South of Here (New Issues Press, 2005, published under her legal name, Lydia Melvin). Her work has appeared in Esque, Jubilat, hercircle, interrupture, The Owls, Pebble Lake Review, Pyrta, Reverie, and Sententia. She is a visiting assistant professor in the MFA program at Louisiana State University.
