shhhhhh...
i stayed so still
in the secret place
the hiding place
my ma ma made
beneath the banana tree
beneath the stones
and berry vines
so still
the senuous vines began to grow
thru me
pushed under my skin
ran along my veins
sliced clear across my heart
pierced my ears
berries grew
plump
in my eardrums
screams burst thru purple capsules
like machettes exploding thru
skulls
my brown skin melted
into the dark rich earth
or did the dark rich earth
break down my brown skin
i could feel the worms
crawling beneath me
i dare not move
so they burrowed deeper
into my eyes
tunneling into my vision
i inhaled the leaves surrounding me
for breathing would give me away
by Spring
i had grown new buds
new vines
stretched myself across the killing fields
to my village
stretched across what was no more
fragile tendrils gently touched scattered bones
my ma ma
my pa pa
my sister
i did not know which arm or leg went with which body
so i gathered them all into my vines
pulled them back to my hiding place
berries squeezed black tears
across their picked bones
i cradled them and rocked them
the hollowness created a beautiful lullabye
heard thru the winds
i grew thru the parts missing
became stronger
became whole again