SATANIC PANIC:

Christine Kanownik

I was exactly what I wanted to be—hunted

When you are driving at night, do you tend to
look in your rearview mirror more or less?

what do you see each time?
1. nothing
2. the empty road
3. a dark figure in the backseat
4. headlights, approaching
5. taillights, departing
6. something you need

tally your score

now convert your children to the Church of Satan

I gave my body to Satan once
he never called
but I am filled with a dark magic
that makes telephones useless at best

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I don't remember whether I saw this image (below) first or whether I wrote this poem and then saw this picture and then identified the two in my head. I found the image while researching the Church of Satan. It is sort of a lovely photo in a classical sense and it's composition is bizarre and intriguing (I'm obviously not an art historian). But the combination of naked, idealized, faceless female bodies and violence belies any significance the image has. I'm writing a book of poetry that's a feminist take on decapitation. And it turns out that researching decapitation leads you down a lot of dark and threatening paths. Maybe this is my way of reducing a potential threat. Maybe it will be a helpful technique in the future.