The Wonder of Butter Thinly Spread

 

(Two poems competition, 40 lines only) 

The Wonder of Butter Thinly Spread

Why does nobody see how hard this is.
It’s like starting with a firm piece of toast,
thick with chunky butter you’re delighted to eat.
But as the butter melts,
it seeps straight through the toast.
You’re left unsure whether you even
put the butter on in the first place.
And instead of that firm bite,
you’re holding a piece
of slightly wet toast.
Then you bite into what you thought
was going to be solid, warm, familiar —
the taste you remember.
But instead it’s gone cold.
The fat clings to the roof of your mouth,
leaving a strange aftertaste
you didn’t prepare for.
And you’re left with the memory
of what you thought it was going to be,
what you know it should be.
But time has passed,
its flippy floppy wet soggy
and the taste is nothing like what you imagined.
Not firm crisp and held.
disregarded
slippery
You’re left cold
judder
feeling the floppy wet toast
with the fat taste.
And it becomes a metaphor
for everything you brace yourself for —
everything you get ready to bite into,
thinking it will be one thing,
only to find it’s changed
while you weren’t looking.
And you’re left disappointed.
As the butter drips down your fingers
and your face
Empty - No focus -let down