Taxidermy

Did you let him make you taxidermy?

Did you kill yourself

trying to distort in unnatural ways

making yourself beautiful

covering up cause of death

and smiling with marble eyes

Did you drown yourself in preservatives

packaged in handles and foil

and kept distant from yourself

buried in a desert heart with no grave

because his callouses made you bulletproof

Did you stitch your parts back together

in ways that didn't fit

with cuts that never bled enough

did you cover those up, too

because sadness isn't becoming

of the dead

Did your corpse wander after him

stiff and groomed

existing solely for his aesthetic

until you were a statement piece

in his bed

Did you find how hard it is to restart a heart

after it's been taxidermy

for far too long

Author's Note

constructive criticism appreciated!

Reviews

[Sami Khalil]

You must know or been around people who do that kind of work. A splendid read and write...:)

[Gabriele Montgomery]

thank you very much!

[Sami Khalil]

You are welcome...:)