her breath
was lost in the
beauty
of woodwork
that housed
the contents of
her previous
heart

every beat was
a gasp for
the air she so solemnly
beckoned

a taste of its
pressure before all
that broke
her

well, the ****** thing
was locked shut
in a former haze of
lunacy

& she'd taken full
advantage
of lush-ridden amnesia
to summon the
combination

cirrhosis sounded like
a fantasy ride
compared
to a resurrection of
the past year

& she can't open
the safe
she cannot open
what was
safe

but she's grown enough
to cling onto
courage
like it's her last
cigarette


& she doesn't even
smoke