STRANGLED TONGUE
A retired college teacher
remembers eating dog food
as a kid during the dark days
of the Depression.
When his wife leaves him,
he marries a young student
who happens to be a vegan.
Dog food is beginning to make
his mouth water, since his tongue
has been strangled by seaweeds,
sprouts, kale, kohlirabi, nut juices
and meatless meatballs.
Starving all the livelong day,
the mind of his tongue
Is now sadly moribund,
and his hungry eyes are out
on the street, panhandling
for something good to eat.