The Line Never Stops

if you dropped dead on the line today

you’d be replaced by midday

you are not a name or a face

you are chef

a body to fill the space

hands burn, cuts bleed

all for the sake of speed

but you’re getting slow, getting tired

time for youth, fresh and wired

experience, progression?

willing to work for pride

let them exploit your obsession

with plated perfection

the more skill you bring, the more you cost

there’s always someone younger, hungrier, and lost

the kitchen never stops —

but your body will