shrink wrapped

Came in out of the night,
ringing round and round.
Foolish, preoccupied and
uninteresting. Formal, stiff

but, there was love. But,
it made its way through tunnels-
my mole, my cavern over and over

As the hair extends into the ground, 
Holding all. Stabilise, renew. 
Find solace ‘neath what once was her arms
There’s life in you yet. 

Back, back to when she stood outside your window

Lay the table,
Where all the women will be sat. 
Soft linen wraps her wooden body.
What once was a growing life, 
Feeds the darlings now. 
 Preparation chews up life- 
 All is ready. 

Bated breath
Shadows, sullen whispers
And eyes. Infinite eyes – the audience collected. 

Gentle rhythms rock the night. 
My feet on the ground. Hand on the door. Cup on the floor. 
Syncopated. Deliberate. 

Those crackling mornings when the frost holds its breath,
Bring back the girlhood unceremoniously dumped in the muck. 
A glee wrapped up in scarf and coat,
Family with the frozen dewdrops. 

It’s still an isolation, 

They’ve filled their mouths with dirt,
elegantly crumbling from any available pore.
It’s the right idea. 
Dispersing that clump of guilt into chunks 
For the lives that passed through.

Every headlight glimmers.