Recipe for Infinite Jello

1. To collect collagen, stack bones in a large pot and boil.
2. Fill a sachet with expensive spices. Long pepper, galangal, saffron. Strength, hex-breaking, wealth. The collagen is a memory. The spice is fervor. This process alchemizes life into a stable molecular structure.
3. Strain broth into vessel with colander. All solid matter should be left behind. This is spirit.
4. Wait. Under normal circumstances, spirit will evaporate but this process traps it in gelatin.
5. Place vessel close to chest and spin until released.
6. To serve, cut slowly. Go deep. Connective tissue is not severed, it multiplies.
7. Share with lover.
8. Jello will dance on the plate. This is evidence that the jello feels joy
9. Eat but do not merely consume. Savor.
10. To release spirit, press jello against roof of mouth until it pops. As jello melts, the collagen will absorb into the tongue, into the blood, into the body.
11. Make a pact. Whoever survives must dig up the other and harvest the bones. The earth is greedy. Move rapidly.
12. Cut slowly. Stack bones in a pot. The connective tissue is still there. Hesitation is proof that collagen is active and the connection has not been severed.
13. Fill a sachet with expensive spices. Cilantro, ginger, salt. Purity, health, longevity. The collagen remembers.
14. Strain broth into second favorite vessel. Share with someone new. This is another contract.
15. Repeat.

This is a recipe for infinite jello

this recipe is a threat

in this recipe the cook will melt

down your flesh and

break down bones

and boil until all

the water evaporates so

all that’s left is your

soul

in a prism of collagen

set into a decorative mold

in a shape that you hate

stuck in the fridge fusing

with antifreeze and bacteria

and then the chef will eat your femur

and your skin

and blood and your

memories and your dick

and your eyeballs until

the chef is sick

This is a recipe for infinite jello

and it is revenge when you (the jello (dead))

come back up my throat to burn my gums and stain

the bathroom cadmium red

because the chef cannot get rid of you even

when they break you

down and eat you

whole

and the chef is scared of

the mess you made

so they scrub

but the sugar and bones

and all your memories

are still stained with

powdered bleach and poopouri

This is a recipe for infinite jello

this recipe is a contract

it says we will be together forever

and ever

-

This is a poem that was featured in Issue 45 of the Nashville Review on Kink & Culture.