As the words jumped out in front
Of her, they danced along the page
In a spinning effect. Spinning the
bird word as drib while bats stab
with a grip, grapping her throat
Sucking her voice in as if she
Read backwards back at these words.
Trumpeting bumps from the humps and
Lumps of the umps, thumped her heart
With a fluttering pump making her utter
A muttering stutter.
The O’s read like wide open mouths
Staring her down with Q’s teeth knifing
One letter after the next in the text,
Feeling vexed and perplexed
when she read aloud, with the words
All a cloud, mixed together as she heard
Laughter from the crowd.
Stumbling and fumbling over and over
With sweaty palms melting the words
Off the paper, she cried a vowel
Y!