In this project, I study what it means to be “sweet.” This is a word I’ve been described as many times in my life. What does it mean to be sweet? Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Can you be too sweet? To study this, I arranged a display of “sweet” objects innocently outside, doused in honey, candy, and other confections. Then I waited. The results are photographed below, paired with a poem I wrote.
![](https://inkmagazinevcu.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/test3-1300x731.jpg)
She’s so sweet she’ll rot your teeth
![](https://inkmagazinevcu.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/test2-1300x731.jpg)
Lick the spoon
Bite the candy
The sweetest things are oh so dandy
![](https://inkmagazinevcu.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/test4-1300x731.jpg)
The honey sticks and clings beneath
Transforming the shiny porcelain teeth
They begin to stain and bruise and decay
Rotting away from the sweetness of the day
![](https://inkmagazinevcu.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/test7-1300x731.jpg)
The ants come marching to have a bite
The flies are swarming for an afternoon delight
They divide and share the candied remains
Buried in the molars and gummy membranes
![](https://inkmagazinevcu.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/test6-1300x731.jpg)
Isn’t it the sweetest thing?