art music poetry

Gallium

Janet Kuypers

from the “Periodic Table of Poetry” series (#31, Ga)
(based on the poem “Almost the Best Part”)
10/2/13

Isn’t that moment of expectation
almost the best part?

How it melts in your mouth
and not in your hands…

Or,
is it the most
heart-wrenching
part.

When you think everything is over,
you see
that at 30 degrees C
everything melts away.

And you think you shouldn’t be doing this,
that this can’t be happening,
but on a hot day —
everything is held in peril.

Because as I said,
everything can melt away.

Yeah, I know how they say
it melts in your mouth
and not in your hands,
but after a lick,
it doesn’t have much of a taste,
it’s a bit astringent
and has a metallic taste
that lasts a few hours.
But as I said,
it melts in your mouth
and not in your hands,
but no one even knows
what it tastes like
when it’s molten…

But still,
with a low melting point
and a high boiling point
and no toxic vapor,
it contracts as it melts
(much like water).
It actually floats
on it’s own liquid.

You want to see it
floating away on itself like that,
you want to see
what you think are the laws of nature
being broken,
so you wait for that moment of expectation,
to see that moment of change,
and wonder
it that’s almost the best part.