Puma Perl
Learning to Say No
Keep your eyes open.
Place your tongue
along the roof
of your mouth
behind your front teeth.
Do not smile.
Smiles become yes,
stretch into of course,
and before you blink twice
your clothes are off
or you’re cat-sitting
or buying shoes
that don’t fit.
Do not smile.
Position your mouth
into a little O.
Move your tongue
forward. Release
Make a little noise.
Growl if you must.
Do not smile.
Originally published in MER Vol. 8 “Lessons” 2010
Puma Perl is a poet, writer, and performer and is the author of two chapbooks, Ruby True and Belinda and Her Friends, and three full-length poetry collections, knuckle tattoos, Retrograde (great weather for MEDIA), and Birthdays Before and After (Beyond Baroque Books.) Her band, Puma Perl and Friends, brings spoken word together with rock and roll and has performed together since 2012. She’s received four awards from the New York Press Association in recognition of her journalism and was the recipient of the 2016 Acker Award in the category of writing. In May of 2021, she curated and performed in four shows as part of the HOWL Happening! Artist in Residence program. In 2022, she was honored to read at the Whitney Biennial, New York City.