Dana Naone (Kaneohe, Oahu, Hawaii): The Distance

I have been sitting for days
trying to flatten my right breat
in hope of becoming an Amazon.
You appeared as a repairman
and went straight to the switch-
board behind my stomach.
a strange orange bird had been
pecking through all the wires,
You killed the bird and used
its feathers to make new connections.
My first call was to Egypt.
All the cobras came to the phone
flaring and hissing.