Coming of Age

In the cold I was alone.

My voice scooped

a hole in the snow.

There was no grand story.

I broke the truth into

little shards of ice

that turned to lies

and scampered off.

Could no longer

cap the rot with silver

like a molar, or

distill my life into

the same fist-sized stone.

Everything I knew

was wrong. There was

no getting around it.

I tracked a circle

in the rigid dirt

and knelt inside.

I would not let

myself leave until

I understood.

 

That too was

a mistake.


Also by Shira Haus