petals plucked
I ask the stem

do you feel
the pain I do

I think you
must feel more

even though my
answer is not

I still have the
chance to

grow from this

I was hiding

this skin my
perfect cover

who would
look for a

soul so soft
and beautiful

radiant and
forgiving

inside this skin

I love the
way it sounds

so many
syllables

it is more
than a name

it is musical

it plays
with my
tongue

it begs to
be sung

I wish I
knew someone

named penelope
so I could

sing it
everyday

we speak
but we do

not speak to
each other

we are dogs
looking for

our own
old raggedy

bones to
chew on

on the first day
we breathe
fresh air

our minds
come to life

we sense the
movement of
small things

inside and out
the connecting

of two neurons
the twitch of

an ant’s leg
before it moves

it is like the
beginning of

love when

we drop our
heavy weights

and hold hands

I cut up
the world

open it
to only me

it has to be
only because

it is up to me
to share it

I **** up
its essence

a potion
a poison

let it move
through me

let it change me
as I change it

I give it back
to the world

and hope I
have created

more than I
took

there is a virus
biological

it is new
it is information

our bodies
cannot process

it replicates
rapidly

to survive
not to **** us

there is a virus
cultural

it is not new
it is information

our minds
refuse to process

it replicates
rapidly

to **** some
of us

which one is
more dangerous

which is one
is really making

us sick