the backs of my teeth
are rough
rough enough to make
my tongue tip bleed
from brushing against
them
it’s too bad because
i had so much to say
and now blood
dribbles down my chin
when i try to speak
you ask
what did you do to get
the backs of your teeth
so screwed up
i tell you through
lips coated in pink
froth
it was the words
that hammered against them
while i clenched my jaw
held my peace
the acid of every word
i forced myself to swallow
staining them
eating away at them
making them sharp
and hollow
like dead coral
Words and Feathers 
This is some heavy hitting writing. I really like the way the poem unfolds, and I can’t imagine anyone reading it without identifying.
Thanks very much. I wasn’t too sure about it when I hit publish. I feel like I’m the worst judge of my own work.
I bet your tongue is very clean after being scraped against your sharp teeth! I collect dead coral — I actually have some cool pink ones. I also like the image of a trail of blood running down your chin. 🙂 COOL poem.
It’s true. Using broken teeth is much more efficient than a tongue scraper. Really all that surface material off.
Thanks for liking my poem 😉
This is so good ! When I read the title, I thought….”What :(, okay just read” …….But when the lines unfolded them, I was marveled…..
Thank you so much! I’m glad you stopped by.
You wrote excellently 🙂
I couldn’t tell where there this poem was going, Good job!
Rinse and spit. 🙂
Ha ha. Thank you. I like that as an alternate title!
Feel free to use it. 😉
Potent words, powerful image. It actually does feel like acid in my mouth when I am forced to hold my tongue…
And the habitual self-silencing can do more long term damage to a body, as I know. Thank goodness for writing as a release of a sort!…
Interesting side note: many dream symbology books claim damaged teeth has to do with decision making in dreams. This poem fits right in to that school of thought… 🙂
Decision making, huh? That’s interesting. I hate making decisions and I frequently have dreams of my teeth breaking.
Thank you for your kind words.
I feel the impact of your words like a train impacting my brain. I really love the poem. 🙂
Thank you so much!
this is a great poem!
I love this
great read
Thank you!