​the belly of the beast


i agree to be swallowed whole
  a morsel of knowledge
              sinking 
                  to the 
              silty 
                  bottom
  of the churning muck and mulch
                                        digested for 
                                        dimensions 
                                              to come

                                        teeth close shut 
      tongue curls overunder
                                      embraced at every turn by
      the hands of our tupuna
                                       guiding us down their gullet

                                      salivary walls and sticky windows
                                  stripping mucus muscled struts
                              a quick drag and a lit match
                          illuminating in ill matter
                      a pulsing coursing beat

                                    sister stony brother boulders
                                     ensorcelled in sources cells
                                                  natured gneiss
                                              metamorphized 
                                                  mountains
                                                      cracked
                                                          base

                                                            my 
                                                              spine 
                                                                  in slanted 
                                                                          motion 
                                                                               returns  
                                                                                                        to
                                                                                                                  t h e art h






Ox Matiu (Ngāpuhi) is a tipua through and through, residing in the hills of Te Whanganui-a-Tara while dreaming of translation and toi Māori. A lover of the written word who publishes where and when and whatever.