Ask wikiHow
to ward off the witch
with her flat black claws
tapping on the transit door
while a jukebox grows in your ears
and you wipe your french fry
catsup fingertips
on this week’s overdose
of despair.
Avoid the trapdoor
on the articulated curve
of the bus. Pull the cord.
Don’t forget to thank the driver
for the repercussions
of safe delivery –
your secret stash of anxiety –
rough edges,
snagged keratin.
The witch
sits at the end of the line
and chiaroscuros each digit –
massages her hands
with dandelion oil
before pocketing her sad gloves
of gesture and flaw
while bees dance
as
if
you both are nectar.
Mary Ellen Talley
Mary Ellen Talley’s poems have recently been published in Raven Chronicles, U City Review and Ekphrastic Review as well as in anthologies, All We Can Hold and Ice Cream Poems. Her poetry has received two Pushcart Nominations.
Artwork: Aris Sfakianakis, Older Woman Sitting on a Bus, free stock
Gingerbread House Lit Mag 