I did not consider the fact
That for the rest of your life you would only get older
If I’d been thinking, I would have held in my hand
A fistful of seagrass. I would have rubbed the edges back to raw
And cut myself open carefully
I would have folded back my skin slowly, following
The natural crease of my body. I would have treated myself
Like I do the sheets fresh from the wash or hung
Out on the line to dry in the sun bleached
Of the bleeding but still smelling of it
Until I was at last exposed my whole
Body inside out
When they cut you free I knew
For the first time how we are never the same again
You were born aching and hungry
You were born asking the world to hear you
You were born and I was inside out
Every part of me laid on my chest and you
A screaming crown you a
Heart outside my heart and the world
Upon you
- Confession - December 10, 2020