when I stepped out of the water
I felt like I could finally
scratch away my skin
and expose the white cast
that has been shaking underneath
for a thousand years.
I could prove to my family
my place among demons
on which baptism
doesn't work.
and after my exile,
I could spend every afternoon
in peace,
laying in the grass and weeds
until all the mosquitoes
were perched on trees above me
listening to stories
I'd tell.
and when all of their bodies
fell inward
and floated in the smoke of my speech,
it was never more apparent;
my eyes made themselves
to be black
and were meant to shine
in the glass
of all the others.
Author notes
the power they afford me
A contest entry
- messiah by formless.
300 points, ended September 16, 2008, 10 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
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