I.
vestigiality: the retention of structures, organs, or processes that have lost their evolutionary function in a changing environment. our bodies are museums, as in: the wings of flightless birds. the eyes of lightless cavefish. the pelvic spurs of snakes. in humans, the appendix. the formation of goosebumps under duress. wisdom teeth, once needed to grind plant tissue for digestion. when they can’t erupt fully into the mouth, they can breed bacteria or fatal infection unless extracted. as in: what you learned to survive without can kill you.
II.
vestigiality: the retention of structures, organs, or processes that have lost their evolutionary function in a changing environment. our bodies are museums, as in: the wings of flightless birds. the eyes of lightless cavefish. the pelvic spurs of snakes. in humans, the appendix. the formation of goosebumps under duress. wisdom teeth, once needed to grind plant tissue for digestion. when they can’t erupt fully into the mouth, they can breed bacteria or fatal infection unless extracted. as in: what you learned to survive without can kill you.
III.
vestigiality: the retention of structures, organs, or processes that have lost their evolutionary function in a changing environment. our bodies are museums, as in: the wings of flightless birds. the eyes of lightless cavefish. the pelvic spurs of snakes. in humans, the appendix. the formation of goosebumps under duress. wisdom teeth, once needed to grind plant tissue for digestion. when they can’t erupt fully into the mouth, they can breed bacteria or fatal infection unless extracted. as in: what you learned to survive without can kill you.
JODY CHAN is a writer and organizer based in Toronto. Their writing explores themes of family, queerness, gender, and mental illness. They are a 2017 VONA alum, and their poetry is published/forthcoming in BOAAT, Nat. Brut, Crab Fat Magazine, and Lunch Ticket, among others.