Bloody Tongue

The receiver hot,

my ear was red.

And then I bit, a sharp,

hard spot.

Felt the iron tang

spread, a dull ache.

Words I meant to sling

got caught, for goodness sake.

Always getting in the way,

this muscle, soft and slick.

Too quick to sting, to say

the thing, then make me sick.

Or else it just gets bruised,

a tender, useless lump.

By battles it has lost, or used

up on some bitter slump.