Typewriter Rodeo: Chapped lips

Each week, the Standard reaches out to Austin’s Typewriter Rodeo for a custom poem on Texas topics.

By Rachel YostJanuary 31, 2025 2:36 pm, ,

Chapped lips

Wrinkles and ridges
Bumps and curves
Hills and valleys
Left unexplored
The signal of a newcome season
That just so happens to bring about vast discomfort

What would occur if we let it linger?
For just a moment longer
Instead of retreating to the safety of a balm
Or an oil
Or even a gloss
What if we took the chance
To look beyond the easy fix

But why even bother?
Unnecessarily put yourself through
A feeling that has been averted for centuries
No need to be a hero
Just put on the aquaphor
Let yourself enjoy the relief
Of resolving
What could have been your breaking point today

It ties us together
Each wrinkle
Each curve
Because who even are we
If it weren’t for our chapped lips

A photo of the typewritten poem on a torn half-sheet of light yellow paper.

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