tocin

we have evolved to survive, no matter what
even when surviving isn’t what we want
standing on the edge of a bridge will always give you vertigo,
even when your heart
and your brain
and your soul
disagree on the next course of action

what i resent is not your need for space to breathe,
it’s turning the air i exhale into smog
it’s turning me into the bright blue tree frog
you have evolved to avoid
and acting like my skin secretes just as much toxin
when all i feel from yours is oxytocin

i am not a predator
i do not wish to tear your heart out with my teeth
i want to tear mine out,
and hand it to you,
and know that you will treat it gently
not feel it scald your hands
and make you need to run off to rinse them under the sink
until the water runs red with my blood

creative/artifice