I can’t cuss like I used to,
or perhaps I never could;
when I speak explicitly now,
it just doesn’t sound good.

I like the sound of expletives
and wish I could make them sound convincing,
but whenever I utter one myself,
I don’t believe in what I’m saying.

My wife’s family cusses well,
and does so with conviction,
when they say damnshithell,
they mean it, no fucking fiction.

So when I cuss in poems,
the sensation is usually forced;
I try to use all words equally,
but they end up sounding cursed.