Tina Connolly
tiny atrocities
there is nothing
you can confront
me with from my past
those silly sordid secrets
that everyone has!
the girl
I gave a red apple,
insides bleached white
with tooth-tart poison,
the horse
I had slaughtered,
its palomino head nailed
to confront the princess,
the children
I ate by the dozens,
nibbling on round elbows
in my hut of crisp-edged
gingerbread and sugared leaf –
no
no there is nothing
I will not say it!
everyone has this sharp regretful past
that comes of a sudden while eating an apple
the toothache twinge
of remembering tiny atrocities
you committed
while young
and foolish
groping to understand
who you would be
in the story you made
of your life
_____________
Tina Connolly lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and young son, in a house that came with a dragon in the basement and blackberry vines in the attic. Her stories have appeared in Lightspeed and Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and her poetry in Strange Horizons and Asimov’s. Her debut fantasy novel Ironskin is now out from Tor, with a sequel forthcoming in Fall 2013. She is a frequent reader for Podcastle, and narrates the Parsec-winning flash fiction podcast, Toasted Cake. In the summer she works as a face painter, which means a glitter-filled house is an occupational hazard. Her website is tinaconnolly.com.
