Incinerated Fairy Tale
poetry by M.P. Armstrong
Incinerated Fairy Tale
Once upon a time, you opened your mouth
And opened the floodgates. It didn’t matter
That you were armed this time- pepper spray
And psychology couldn’t protect you.
Once upon a time, we woke to a heroine
In the mouth of the dragon and we called it
Tuesday. We have been vaccinated. Yes,
The papers still singe our fingertips and lay
Smoking among the scrambled eggs- but
We keep the burn ointment next to the orange juice now.
There is no plan, no charting the thousand points
Of light. But it’s okay. We’ll stick and poke our way
To revolution if there is no pattern yet to follow. We’ll
Pull ghosts out of calculus and coffee cups- Chavez,
Millay, and Milk- and hold fast. And we will get hurt,
And lost, and found again
And experiment in cartography.
M.P. Armstrong
M.P. Armstrong is a poet and constantly-stressed college student from Ohio. Her poetry can be found in Blue Marble Review, The Asexual, After the Pause, 805 Lit and Art, and more. She is also a writer and editor at Curtain Call Magazine (@curtaincallbway). In her spare time, she enjoys Netflix documentaries, colorful blazers, and travel.