words you can taste

at the supermarket sighted among the rib eye steaks 

& rump roasts is cow tongue

on a blue platter made of styrofoam 

wrapped in plastic

one among several cow tongues that appear

to await the marvel & caress 

of the eaters who call this a delicacy

a cut of meat above 

cuts of meat but i recall my mother

buying & preparing tongue

because we were the working poor

& it was cheap

& me as a child thought it a kind 

of miracle to eat

a thing that can if you grant the conceit

taste you as you 

tasted it & so i would make up words

a language meant for 

cows to hear me explain my eating

of their tongue

the sounds of it making no

sense in english

words that betrayed my innocence 

& stupidity

but could of course speak cow

& have cow speak me