"Pot Roast, Unburnt" by Lannie Stabile

Pot Roast, Unburnt

Let’s go back in time; rewind
to the lost boy in the woods.

To the frailty of shared molecules
and the aggressive scent of burning

pot roast whose only thought
was to tenderize for family.

As unsullied siblings, let us return
to when we didn't catch dirty jokes

in Saturday morning cartoons.
Or you did but still let me laugh

along, fresh and impressionable. I
don’t know when regard became

rivalry became panic became
rabbit became snake became pit,

but I know I trusted you once
or twice. Maybe it was puberty,

fury growing faster than our cells.
Or our fervent disagreement on

button smashing. Or maybe fire
was the only role model we had.

LANNIE STABILE

Lannie Stabile (she/her), a queer Detroiter, often says while some write like a turtleneck sweater, she writes like a Hawaiian shirt. A finalist for the 2019/2020 Glass Chapbook Series and semifinalist for the Button Poetry 2018 Chapbook Contest, Lannie's first published collection, Little Masticated Darlings, is now out with Wild Pressed Books. Individual works are published/forthcoming in Entropy, Pidgeonholes, Glass Poetry, Okay Donkey, and more. Lannie currently holds the position of Managing Editor at Barren Magazine and is a member of the MMPR Collective. She is a Best of the Net and Pushcart Prize nominee.

Headshot: Callie Miron

Photo Credit: Staff