for all my mamas
delta teach me the sound
my heart makes when it
bends over backwards
to curse at its beat delta got
church stuffed in size 16,
carrying my gottahave milk,
telling me that i can make my
ownself feel good just
when i’m thinking it might
take a man to make me feel
natural
delta teach me fatback,
skillet bread, hogshead,
alaga, drive me crazy with
warm grease, fatten me up
so that i can find
my second mouth
when my living be broken
delta help me find the piece
that can still shout the little bit
that can still squeeze into
a shiny thing and go downtown
where you can
sing about it, girl, sing about it,
pray hard over it, lean into it,
work with it, fry that thang up,
flip it, cut it loose, set fire
to it, turn it over, turn it out,
make it beg, go down on it,
call it sugar out loud, get wide
for it, lie to it, lie for it, lie
with it, but baby, don’t let it kill you.
delta let me rub her throat
while she sing she
three-weave her fingers
while she sing she
wiggle like revelation
while she sing she
peel back my grinning
show everybody that lie
she find underneath there
she rip out the hooks
that man done left in my skin
ignores my pained wailing
bleeds me
delta sponge me down with
pan water dab cheap smellgood
on my shattered shoulders
call me sista when she have to
baby when she want to
and fool most of the time
delta drive her mouth all over me
feeds me pure butter from a
teaspoon make me come like i
never have then she sing me some
aspirin she sing me edged hooch. she
ignores all those eyes. she take me
so dancing