Monday 11 June 2018

The dragon who waited


I am playing that I have a dragon.
If I had a dragon, she would be purple.
She’d have a saddle with golden tassels.
She’d carry me on her back.
She’d hold my heart for me
And then I wouldn’t have to
Sweep it off the floor
When my breath trips up
And my stomach crumbles.
I wish I had a dragon.
***
She is real, and she is mine.
Nobody will ever know
That I carry a dragon
She fits in my jeans pocket.
***
The dragon did not grow…
I think she might be dead.
And I think I am dead, too
Inside my own pocket.
Maybe she was just plastic
And maybe so was I.
***
Now when I pinch my skin
On the back of my hand,
It doesn’t spring back.
I am a popped balloon.
A raisin looking in the mirror
Wishing for a veil
Of forgetfulness
Then, horrified,
I retract my wish.
Behind the mirror
Is my wallet with secrets.
Withered secrets
Sixty years of age.
An ivory elephant,
A leather strap,
A die with numbers,
And a purple plastic dragon.
The dragon unfolds her wings…
“Where have you been?”
“I’ve been looking for the way
Out of my own pocket.”
Sparks of glitter
A lotus rising
Out of my middle
Chitin shell cracks
I will never sweep my heart up again
It clings to the light
It’s time.