pins & needles

I strut home, deflating with each beat on the sidewalk
To lick wounds

a side effect of
intimacy given without regard

In the absence I nurse myself
Treat the lack with blankets
silence
broth & sunlight
soft pillows and something to do with my hands

I take your place

So you can’t be implicated
the next time
I inflate myself for you
for me

So by the end
I’m not a paper doll
Stuck with limbs pins and needles
paralyzed by your sure hand
vague tongue & leading eyes

So that I have just enough
air to get back home.