[needs killing]
needs killing / granny said / showing / her seed-pearl
/ teeth / before that / I stood / at the sink / scrubbing
/ the skillet / well water / faintly / reeking / of sulfur
/ and before that / we pulled / the kitchen table / away
from / the wall / so the men / could eat first / before
that / she sent me / to the garden / tucked between /
the henhouse / and barn / for a tomato / and before
that / Mickey-the-Dog / commenced / his shovel-
headed / barking
Originally published in One Sentence Poems
Leslie Hodge lives in San Diego. Her poems appear in Catamaran Literary Reader, The Main Street Rag, South Florida Poetry Journal, ONE ART, Whale Road Review, Sheila-Na-Gig, and elsewhere. Her debut chapbook, Escape and other poems, was published by Kelsay Books in 2024. Currently she is reading for The Adroit Journal. Visit her at www.lesliehodgepoet.com.