Nil By Mouse (Poetry)

Suddenly I have no appetite for words —
all seem bitter or kind of bland
their staleness curious — they curl like
last night’s sandwiches left out on a tray.

Old lines that string themselves along
meat overcooked they have no bite
all gone to mush beneath a crust
of rancid literal decay.

So scrape the plate — erase the page
that inky mould sticks hard as glue
no comfort food as bloated poems rot
I am resolved to starve away.

The mouse it twitches feeble in my hand
hunger-haunted — sniffing bones of thought
but apathy’s a thin and sickly sauce
the fast is on — no words to share today.