Men Who Steal From Men. Ugly keeps a nose and a tongue. It gave my father his father’s face. It gave my father his father’s second-hand hate. Some only repeat writing on their cheek from their father’s ring. My father kept the words, and gave me silence.

It took the spine from my back and built a table. I cooked with men like me, we ground teeth into soup. We got taxed for sidewalks to stare at, for cops to count the steps. Ugly didn’t give us the needle, but ugly watched us pushed it in.