No, this is not the prickly itch
in the groin as pubescent hormones kick in;
it is not the chafing and aggravation
caused by teen stallion-escence,
chomping at the bit,
stomp and snort of newfound swear words
and sarcasm: shit, piss and vinegar
jumping over boundries, bucking the bridle,
unharnessed mystery power
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge …
Nay, pubifriction is the rubbed-raw
redness, puffy-eyed post-fight
reconciliation
when a sagging forty-plus Mom
lurches to hug her sneering 14-year-old son,
jams her jaw into his awkward shoulder
as he murmurs, monotone, “sorry” and
she scratches her wet cheek on his newly
shaved sharp chin gasping “love ya”
before he shoves her away.

Kate Marshall Flaherty

“Pubifriction” was published in Hobbeldehoy, Lyrical Myrical Press 2008