Poetry Reading: Revenge Theology with Hands, by Sharmila Voorakkara

Performed by Val Cole

POEM:

When I die, I’m coming back to haunt the shit out of everyone who ever screwed me over in this lifetime.And I will be immune to your puny exorcisms. And if you’re on my afterlife shit list and you happen to get yourself dead before me, don’t consider yourself off the hook. Poor you, living or dead. I’ll be an Asian ghost. And Asian ghosts don’t fuck around. I’ll have fifty snakeheads. And in each of my heads, will be a clever brain. And each clever brain is going to remember exactly what you did. And the heads will take turns sleeping. When one sleeps, 49 sisters will be awake and sharpening their teeth on the whetstone of memory. And each of those 50 snake heads will command a set of dog-loyal hands that will salt your heart and shove it in your mouth eternally, and you will swallow again and again and again, motherfuckers.

Just saying.