A POEM by KAYDANCE RICE

calv/calfe/calf/calve

my leg has begun mooing

at me. my cow hurts. i’d

eat veal if i could afford it.

my leg moos in a pasture

full of cows and one

of the baby legs asks what

type of god would let us

exist like this. my leg moos

a malevolent one. my calves

will make a great steak

one day. i can’t wait to milk

‘em. my calves were born

last saturday in the middle

of the highway. traffic

was backed up for hours.

the cow skipped leg

day. everything here

tastes like maggot filled

grass. everything here

is thin and sour and costs

four hundred bucks.

i’ve been trying to eat less

babies. i’ve been forgetting

to shave my cows. my baby

cows kick at the table

and i stare at my legs

on a platter. yum! i dip

my leg hairs in ketchup

and dull my teeth

on the bones as i gnaw.

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Kaydance Rice is a writer from Grand Rapids, Michigan. She has been recognized by the Poetry Society of America, Middle West Press, Hollins University, and the Alliance of Young Artists and Writers. Her work can be found or is forthcoming in the Taco Bell Quarterly, YoungArts Anthology, The Room, voicemail poems, and elsewhere. In her free time, Kaydance enjoys playing the viola, rambling about existentialism, and spending time with her plants.