Performance Art
by Aliza Haskal
i was saying how it rains harder under the trees
because the leaves collect all the water
and drop it on your head
she disagreed and said i was ridiculous
and that was the whole fight
except that was more of an argument than a fight
we only really fought once in a rainy montreal park
about a man who nailed his scrotum to the ground
yael said it was performance art
i disagreed and said she was ridiculous
i preferred the lady who pulled a scroll out of her vagina
that’s where all my thoughts come from too
yael would nail her scrotum to the earth if she had one
grit her teeth and swing the hammer
in college she dug her own grave and laid in it
the audience splattered mud on her white dress
which i did not find ridiculous
because she was the one doing it
we fought sulky and dogged like dad
i’ll never tell her that i came to agree with her
or admit that she knows everything
like what’s right to nail down and what’s wrong
to pull out of your vagina
and that was the fight
we haven’t fought since
we’d never be that honest
about anything anymore
Aliza Haskal
Aliza Haskal is an emerging poet and recent graduate of Syracuse University’s MFA Program. She received a University Poetry Prize from the Academy of American Poets and is published by Club Plum, Eunoia Lit, et al. She is kissing you on the cheek right now.