mark us
like sheep
my fleece may be
store-bought,
washed clean
of all
identity
but i’ve got
a patchwork neck
spotted and dotted
with broken
blood vessels and
i’ve seen the
girls with pennies
scraping at their
skin trying to
get rid of him
one stroke
at a time
(his lips were
just as rough
as the ridges
of their coins)
and
i’ve heard the
girls with pennies
their marks may
have faded
but their pockets
jingle with
each step they
take each move
they make they say
his tongue dripped
gold and
silver and
bronze all over
them but all he
left was
red

mark us
like cattle
my ears may
hold rings and
not tags
but i’ve got
skin so fair
you’d never
dare believe
that beneath
i’m just
another collection
of broken
blood vessels and
he may be
gone from the
surface
may be
easy to remove
but i still
bleed
(and the girls
with pennies
scrape at my
neck one
stroke at a
time)

mark me
like property
my body may
be a temple
but your
prayers will
not be
heard here
you say
the girls
don’t need
their pennies
we say you
have no say
in the way
we heal

our vessels
may have been
yours to break
but they are
not yours to
mend and you
can pretend
you never knew
what we went
through when
you decided
to leave
your signature
on our skin

but we promise
when we look at you
we only see
red

I wrote you this note
So you could cope
I ended my life
With a sharpened knife
It was selfish I admit
But I don't regret it

You tried to make me belive that lie
Things would get better....(sigh)
I've lived many years
And everyday i fear
More bad days than good
So I did what I should

I will love you all forever
Please never dobut that whatsoever
I leave you my love and our memories
And everywhere you go you'll find pennies

Oh look!
A tree!
It's beautiful!
Nature!
Green!
The breeze blows!
Look at those leaves!
Look at the beauty of God's work!
The magnificence!
The wood!
The fruit!
The flower!
The knothole!
The...gum?
There's gum in the knothole?
There IS gum in the knothole!
Doublemint!
Pennies and figurines too!
Who would do such a nice act?
Oh...
Right...
Him...
The one hidden within.
He must really be misunderstood.
I wish we could meet him
So we would know the real him.

Since when is good enough,
Good enough?
Minimum, easiest,
Thoughtless and rushed.

We're giving pennies
Wanting dollars in return
We expect the gold medal
Without effort, it's not earned

Giving enough
to get by, and no more
Yet expecting the best
From the rest of the world

Too focused on taking
To ever give
But a one-sided life
Is no way to live

Good enough is not good enough
Half effort won't yield a full life.
If you feel like you deserve all the best
You've got to give what you'd like.

He coughed in the corner,
With a mangled leg.

He smirked under stars,
With a bowl pocked rice.

They’d spit, they’d scoff,
With their children in tow.

I’d drop change,
With lint left a pocket.

But he’d buy beer knowing –
All’d be well tonight.

sheets smell like pennies
alcohol always lingers
you can feel the poverty
like dirt
on the tip of your fingers

Actually I think I would rather have a fruit
Or a leaf
Pennies don't get you much
Where I come from
Actually
They don't get you anything
Except a weird look
But that is okay
I don't care
It is pretty
I love pretty things
Even if they hold no value
I cherish them
Like I cherish adhesives
Adhesives are great
They stick things together
Sometimes
I wish I could adhesify
My love
And stick her to me
Forever
I love her
Now I am sad