Cosmetinaut
She covers her arms and legs with lye every day, burning and itching and thinking "I'm gonna look so good."
A woman spreads lye over her arms and legs every day. Lye is a harsh chemical that burns skin, yet she keeps doing it, and the poem tells us why in her own words: "I'm gonna look so good." The whole poem turns on the gap between that cheerful thought and the pain around it.
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