Twine Jig

By: Benji Katz

If I showed you an ankle | stuck 

between | railway sleepers 

you’d hear | the loudest whistle 

of the largest  | locomotive 

your imagination | could make

barreling | down 

at the soon to be | obliterated body 

most likely | your body 

& this would evoke | a mucus-curdling 

gasp | in the midst of your snore

the nightmare | reminding  

you of your childhood |

& this nostalgic surge | may get you 

through the initial | shock 

that your parents are not | down the hall

& you’re closer now | than ever

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Born in the cinnamon-spiked chili metropolis of Cincinnati, OH, Benji Katz received his MFA from Bowling Green State University. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in The Oakland Review, Lagom, Polaris, Military Experience & the Arts, and Watershed Review.