You carved my body from soil with a knife
but the earth, she doesn’t
forget who she’s home to Swords and dismemberment sing in my blood I’ve tasted dead limbs
dry-crusted with mud I’ve nurtured an army of strong lilac daughters, cut fast from their stalks to make wine for the hopeless
I’ve kissed miser’s purse strings, put madness in boxes I have friends in dark coffins that trade in old veiled things I’d do it again for eternities, just to be part of it all—
When you gathered me up, carved a woman of me you thought my clay eyes were empty of knowing you just painted my lashes, my womb your new prayerbook now a stranger sleeps
deep in my belly
she will not be part of the soil or the skies,
no burned earth skin or summer grass eyes
Avleen Masawan is a poet from Sydney, Australia. Her poetry and prose has been published in Plants and Poetry, The Silent World in her Vase, MindWell Poetry and the Australian Fairy Tale Society e-zine.
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