Given Horse

No man ought to looke a geuen hors in the mouth.

–John Heywood, from A Dialogue of the Effectual Prouerbs in the English Tongue Concerning Marriage (1546)

I will not look him in the

mouth                I will not look him in

the woman        No woman ought

no man              None ought inspect the teeth

of this horse unless this horse be the gift

of trouble be the gift of burden wrapped

in glitter strewn          be the horse the kind

that kick hard when you feed it          I look it in the mouth

and see it deep cave of secret             it telltale 21lb heart

I look the horse in the mouth and you watch      you

can’t stop me    cant stop                    me seeing its teeth rot out

Ya that horse is gifted but sure   don’t mean it’s a gift

I’m not about to let you tell me           where I open my eyes           

where no woman

ought.                What                  we know about these rules,

Heyword. That geuen hors,

Heyword

That gift of meat and bone, hey word                  That princess neigh

and swagger, hey/word

That bloody mouth hacking the bit red with terror telling me not to

stare, hey

word

What do you know, hay. Werd.