Time was measured by the streetlights I was always too scared of the dark A short hamper ride away is where my house sat But every morning it was to grandmother’s house I go Spoiled, spirited, and sassy Being small was sweaty work, my skin always sensitive and tan from the sun I followed my Mimi around her gardens like a little duckling She was always a comfort to me; sizzling pepsi and soft soil was her perfume Once a day she sang our song to the creaking rhythm of her rocking chair I was her Angel wing Then, one day I became a liar My world became constrained, the gardens I ran through as a child grew vines of ivy that wrapped me up like chains, that touched my skin and left behind a rash that never went away. I fight with myself to this day about freedom My childhood was a six-foot-deep hole, I could see the blue sky and envy the birds flying above but my nails were never quite long enough to pull myself out I was forced to live in a burning home, on a knife's edge I looked like a heavenly child, but I held hate like the devil I hurt and ached with no voice to yell out. My mouth stayed clenched shut. I hold my shaky hands and chapped lips close to me Wearing them like a second skin, my fear grew a soul inside me Until I couldn’t eat, my cheeks hollow and my eyes lost their summer swamp glow Another body grew to fit inside mine Burning hot to scream at the top of my lungs To break windows, weep for my lost self, And baptize this entity from my body 42
Angel Wing | Haley Arsenault
