by Kiran Bath
1
Google: How early do girls masturbate?
in her eighth year / maybe earlier / low tides birthed: a lotus / splitting legs / to conch shell murmurs / she swirls / her lotus / chews mattress / her lotus / bends pillow / her lotus / rubs its cheek / against raggedy Anne / repetition sharpens / her lotus / petal / into blade / petal tears / knitted crotch / crotch spills / cotton / spills / from mute dolly / yet / no cotton / will enter girl / enter lotus / tampons are phallic / kabardaar
2
Google: How common is it?
shereef larki /
i thought / i was / near extinction / until /
cousin-sister / practiced liar /
would emerge from cupboard / flushed from urgency /
i demanded to smell / velocity / on her fingertips /
prove to me / no monopoly / for little boys / to fiddle with / plusher parts /
endocrinologists say / excess androgens /cause acne / cause facial hair/ cause sexuality? /
no /
there is no man inside of me / neither woman / just-me-just-me-just-me /
lotus / pink / cotton / petal / brown / finger / tip / toe / tip / toe / around /
gyrating swans / pirouette / of sinning / brown women /
i am / the giant clit in the room /i am / Sita in exile /
a sage of / epileptic climax / in service of / body electric /
powered by / lunar cycles /
every moon / dies /
and rises /
inside
3
Exam: How is the hymen broken?
1. the jazz splits
2. the downward dog
3. self taught guitarist
4. a boy
5. a girl
6. a digit
7. a thirst
8. BMX
9. sin
10. excavation
11. the beach
12. (does anyone have a tampon?)
13. i don’t know
14. i’m not supposed to know
“Waning Gibbous” previously appeared in Lunch Ticket.
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