Aphrodite’s Audience
Her plates look like minimalist paintings,
and I am left wondering
what kind of hunger is acceptable
She was born of Aphrodite’s shell but denounces her origins
Little bird,
if you are not beautiful
what does that make me?
At dinner, I think of stitched lips and pennied collarbones
I eat silence for dessert
and soak in the darkness of my dining room
My body is immortalized in my memories of her emaciation
She cries into her yogurt while I butter toast
The disgusting part of me
is envious
Mollie McMullan is a sophomore at SUNY Geneseo. In her work, she explores themes of patriarchal control, the role of womanhood, and the concept of permanence.