Bunny and Other Poems

Rose Ramsden

Jenna Marbles gives her rescue greyhound, Bunny, a bath and my breath splinters

Teach me no

then show me how

to give yes

like a privilege. Respect 

my growl. My warning.

Every time I set a boundary

feed me biscuits and beef jerky.

Teach me not to fear

cars, the TV, the dark,

the porcelain lip of the bathtub. 

The first time you bathe me,

my body a question mark,

you know I am afraid of water

so as it rains,

you hold my face

above the surface.

when you’re mean to me this is who you’re being mean to

a doe with a polka dot bindle stick between her teeth    carrying walnuts and goat cheese
eyes moon round    pure    accusing   to look
would remind you of every selfishness    look    how they sparkle like
carbonated water when you’re mean to me    remember
i am just a little kitten      paws so small    they sink in litter tray pellets    imagine
hating on me    when my thumbs can’t touch    the index    of girlhood
bows    pink    scrunchies    small    strawberries    itsy    bitsy    tiny
mouse    fine dining on trail mix    sipping red bull like
a sparrow from a bird bath when you’re mean to me
you snip a bunny’s sugar paper wings   nobody here knows    inside me    are two sheep
one just a girl               and one craves
cartilage             gristle
permission   to soften   her belly

chlorine

my overdraft and I have a trauma bond and once again my boundaries are being tested

I think we need to make the executive decision to take LinkedIn out back and put it down just heave its body into a ditch along with tips on Upskilling ADHD in The Workplace see the thing about writing is I don’t want to go on atomoxetine you can tell your family you got into a magazine then go well no it’s not paid per se but I’m not getting a real job I’m not meant for Microsoft Teams I should be frolicking braless with the tulips because the thing about retail is it’s shit but you never want to leave it’s a bit like a long-term relationship or university because if you’ve already got debt stepping on your neck why fret about an MA you’re never gonna earn enough to start paying it off anyway see poetry starves the body but feeds the soul and I am gorging on its empty calories like a family size bag of crisps with cheddar dust dissolving on my lips