Hot as Fuck

by Leslie Shalduha

Only not in a good way

Helpless to stop the flare

Tik tik tik

Warning warning

Prickles of heat 

Popping out everywhere on my body

Until they merge 

Into one solid mass of molten lava

Seems to have taken over my body

Cloying sweat clings to my skin

From toe to scalp and

All points in between 

I move quickly

Seeking a cool breeze

Standing in front of a fan

Placed in an open window

I stand within inches of it

Reading The Menopause Brain

In short spurts

The length of the flare

In never ending yet never effective 

Hope of distraction

I wait for it to end 

To be freed from being a 

Captive of lava

It is over suddenly

I gratefully reach up to

Turn off the fan

As I turn to walk away

The freeze hits

opposite of lava

The cold takes hold of me

I seek immediate warmth

By grabbing a sweater

One of many,

placed Strategically in each room

I pull it tight around me

Wrapping my arms 

around my middle against the arctic chill