it is wild how
each step forth from this closet
strips my gossamer skin of an unwanted garment
not simply un-straight
(but un-straight)
un-wife
(but un-wife)
off slinks silent survivor
puddled on the floor
measuring tape shame peels off in ribbons
sticky-humid with self-loathing
a broken clasp of ossified pearlsĀ
their staccato exhale across the bathroom tile
she is coiled beneath the bed and i no longer recognize her
she only ever belonged to someone else
someone who found
her heart too tender
her laugh too witchy
her belly too fed
there is a cake on the windowsill
its pink flight path streaked across my
handslipsbreasts
even naked and shimmering
i am anointed
adorned
suddenly enough
imagine a world
who only wanted herĀ
hungry
xx Jen