Elinguation
The tongue is mightier than the sword,
in sex and in war,
sink ships with tactful lips
if you know what you fight for.
Bite the hands that only feed
themselves
til their knuckles bleed
and their bones rebel.
Revel with outcasts on the margins
and let your music swell.
They’ll try to smother
words that dance like flames,
as fire cannot be caged or tamed,
they’ll spit their lies and shame.
But I’d rather my tongue
ripped from my throat,
than a pitiful corpse
of a torpid slug
decaying between my gums.
I won’t tamper my fire,
won’t let lyrics die unsung,
and if they steal them from my throat—
I’ll hum.
Monty Cooke (they/he) is an English adolescent education major at SUNY Fredonia. They often host open mics in their hometown and are the events coordinator for SUNY Fredonia’s Writers’ Ring. Monty’s work has been published in the 2024 and 2025 edition of The Trident, Fredonia’s literary magazine.