little by little
i’m chipping away
off my neck now,
my shoulders
day after day

my arms &
my elbows
my f i n g e r t i p s knew

that my wrists are to straw
as my heart is to you

so it’s onto my ribs now
my hips turn to glass

thick skin learns so quick
it gets thin & won’t last

i’m frightened, reminding my thighs
they can hold, the last of our body -
“turn rust into gold”

I start to give up now
& quit rings my ears
but my knees start to speak;
out loud like my mouth
with a voice through my feet

say, “a mood moves our blood at the pace of our fears, and the heart will beat fast so the body can hear. if you lie here like this, your flowers will go, & all of this woman will no longer float.”