Do not die tonight
The heart that has become hollow
Is a sacred tomb you once built
Out of broken trinkets and feathers
Inside
A wild little girl sleeps
Holding a dream catcher close to her *****
For eternity
Rain that once pattered against your window
On nights to keep chaos at bay
Now watches over you
Silently
The neighbor’s dog howls at the
Psychic Catastrophe
As the moon dissolves into the ocean waves
Be gentle with your pain Child
She says
Know that yanking out a dozen hair strands
Will not erase ‘self-hate’
Do not stare into a mirror tonight
What you see is not You anymore
Vacant eyes and creaking bones
Your body is now home to another host
A piercing wail echoes through the night sky
And splits the city air
The broken glass on the bathroom floor
Glints like a Sailor’s forgotten treasure
Swimming over the vast red sea, kindling with its own symphony
–Afia Qamar