Instructions for Lucretia

Take a spoonful of sugar for the hiccups
Dash his brains into his mouth
Map the stretch marks on your thighs
Stay grounded by looking up
Inhale the sky
Avoid long speeches
Call your mother, talk about the day you were born
Admit to nothing
Open the window and roll the sun between your fingers
Laugh until it hurts
Until you cry
Cry
Measure your comfort in crow miles,
the distance between your life and honour
Wear your jewels to bed
Don’t make or ask for promises
Slice open the underbelly of every cloud
Let it rain
Let them drown.

The Secrets to Survival by Marla Benton (ceramic)

Listen to Hollay Ghadery read “Instructions for Lucretia.”