Gently, I bleed.
Red beads roll carefully down my arms,
Clumping at long hairs;
Orange races down my neck and
Pools at the dip of my collarbone;
Yellow spills from my tongue.
Green spurts from my palms,
A leaping fountain as my heart beats and
Blue trickles down my legs, streaking the
Backs of my calves
And violet, dark violet
Shivers from my eyes.
You look at these colors and say
“What a mess that has made of you”
But don’t you know
From head to toe they intermingle, the grief
And the pride and the pain?
I toss my head back, mouth open,
And what rings out is a declaration of existences
Mine intermingled with theirs, tasting like sorrow.
Gently, I bleed
Because others already have
And I stand here, screaming
And I stand here, screaming.