Poetry: Puppeteer

Puppeteer
You turn me
Like a camera setting
Normal to negative
With a click
My voice modulates
To your ear
High tones dialed down
Pitch bent skewed
You hand me a script
Q and A for the party
Lists topics to avoid
People I may talk to
How do I look?
You look me over
Black evening dress
Hair up, heels high
Proper posture
Oh, you forgot these…
I touch my ears,
Barren of drops, and smile.
You turn to reach inside a drawer
And pull out strings.
“Marionette Series” Oil on canvas
by Sarah Dixon

Published by Shannon Laws

Shannon Laws is a poet, producer, and advocate for the arts. She is the recipient of the Village Books Literary Citizenship Award, two Mayor’s Arts Awards, and the “Dr. Asha Bhargava Memorial Award — Community Champion” from the Writers International Network in British Columbia. Shannon is the author of four poetry books and one poetry album. Since 2022, she has published Corridor, a free monthly poetry zine. She lives in Bellingham, Washington, near the Salish Sea.

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