"Sibling Rivalry" by Lannie Stabile

Sibling Rivalry

He starts the conversation with, I don’t always agree with
the things you do.  

Followed by a long list of things he does not always agree
with that I do. 

Of course, I cannot get offended because my brother ends
with, but I still love you because you’re family.

Twenty percent of meerkats are killed by their own kind. 

If she senses a defect, a mother hamster will eat her tiny,
pink pups.

Hyena cubs often attack siblings not yet emerged from the
amniotic sac.

And once I called the police when his animal hands gnawed
at my throat.

Lannie Stabile

Lannie Stabile (she/her), a queer Detroiter, often says while some write like a turtleneck sweater, she writes like a Hawaiian shirt. A finalist for the 2019/2020 Glass Chapbook Series and semifinalist for the Button Poetry 2018 Chapbook Contest, Lannie's first published collection, Little Masticated Darlings, is now out with Wild Pressed Books. Individual works are published/forthcoming in Entropy, Pidgeonholes, Glass Poetry, Okay Donkey, and more. Lannie currently holds the position of Managing Editor at Barren Magazine and is a member of the MMPR Collective. She is a Best of the Net and Pushcart Prize nominee.

Headshot: Callie Miron

Photo Credit: Jackson Purcell