by Seohyun Ryu
For Kafka
I’m not hungry for food
nor your money
nor your eyes
I’m hungry for art
hungry for myself
hungry for hunger
you rip my unwilling mouth wide open
and shove blood-dripping flesh that stings
that stings my throbbing throat
I grasp the metal bars
they stain my hands with gray dark success
but no need to feel the ghostly pity
because more than forty days later,
I will be standing on top of a mighty panther’s back
thanking the audience, I, for making me
a full artist.
Seohyun Ryu is passionate in connecting the study of language and storytelling through various forms of art.. She moved to California during her first year of high school from South Korea. Her works have been recognized by Outlander Zine, The 309 Collective, LA Youth Poet Laureate, and much more. When she’s not writing, you can find her knitting blankets for her two dogs to snuggle in.