Love Poem: The Cutting Edge
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Written by: Kim Rodrigues

The Cutting Edge

THE CUTTING EDGE*

salt and salt assault
their wrists can’t resist
the attack, the zip

their skates sizzle
on the salty ice
sniffervescent**

cold and fresh
unresistant

chained back to back
in escapades

hearts a-beating
threatening to give them away

so they turn
a-way and away

‘til an I love you
is dropped onto the ice
like a lady’s lacy handkerchief

the olympians trace
a myriad of hearts
on the transparent rink

the rush of applause
the comeuppance of audience*** —
loves pink-glazed cheeks

4/30/2021

*The Cutting Edge - 1992 Movie tribute

**Sniffervescent - The effervescence of sniffing the ice,
the enjoyment of being on the ice

***comeuppance - I’ve used here as a reversal of its original meaning -
the crowd comes to its feet, instead of penalty, a reward.