Poetry - Word Song

Word Song

Words with little brown shoes march
from behind my brow
they reach my teeth
they slide down my tongue and leave
in cadence   in 30-inch steps

the words with brown shoes
are nice   and tidy   they belong
to a   correct   world
they make sense   and follow the rules.

From the back of my head
other words dance
on tippy toes
they flit
like fantails

they run zig zag through my brain
they visit the left ear and the right
they rest for hours
behind each eye

when they are ready
they pause
and somersault
out of my mouth.

This poem was first published in Mayhem, the University of Waikato online literary journal.