by Reena Alter

Buy wine
Get your body home as fast as you can
Pull the windows down in your car
Let the air pass through your pores
And high five your skull
Open the door and slam it
Don’t apologize
Change into sweatpants
The big kind
The ones with the holes in the pockets
The ones you used to apologize for
When you would let your husband sleep over
Before he was your husband
Before your sleeping had a timeline
An endpoint
Put on a pot of water
And boil that shit
Make the room hot
Let the steam rub your cheeks
And close your eyes
Shut
Shut shut
Throw the pasta in
The thick kind
The ones you save for celebrations
Because they make your belly big
Bloated
A big you can’t seem to make otherwise
It doesn’t stick
Like pasta to the walls
When it’s done pour sauce over it
The creamy kind
Fuck the veggies
We are not apologizing for calories today
Pour yourself a glass of wine
Drink it quick
Drink it slow
Drink it till the mind swims laps in your head
Eat Your Heart Out
You’re getting used to slicing off pieces
And offering them to family for a taste
Here I am
Look how good I’ve marinated myself
For your judgment
Tell me again how you wish it were me this time
We can all pretend
I haven’t blown the smoke off my burns
And regrown the skin for your amusement
When you’ve finished
Wash the dishes
Put the pot away
Text your cousin back
Congratulations!
I can’t wait to have another baby
In the family!