Humpty Dumpty
It took 30 minutes of screaming to tear us apart
It will take days of silence to put us back together
Egg shell fragile, from the wall I fell
Slipping my hand into your back pocket
For safety, no, but to make sure you fell as well
On and on you go, finally landing on my fists
Collapsing into nothing more
Than the smears of paint God created you with
I’ll dip my fingertips in your colors
And dance them across the wallpaper
Like a spoiled child with forbidden crayons
In Grandmother’s perfect parlor
Acquiesce, sounds like singing under water
Like bubbles of fizzing laughter in your throat
But it’s a begrudged white banner, giving in, giving up
Turning our backs to find
solace in ourselves
Through narrowed eyes I watch your apology
Unfolding your origami words with care
Your hands outstretched to catch us
When the thinning ice finally breaks
We breathe together, a sigh of relief
Embracing one another, safe again it seems
You turn away, satisfied, at peace with this moment
I turn away, unforgiving, heel crushing the paper crane
you left behind
