Love or the Absence of

by Zoë Love

You made my heart crawl back behind my ribs
And the hurt still hasn't gone away
It's taken a lot of care and healing to get it to start beating again
You've made my heart stop pumping
You've made every nerve in my body tense
My heart went from violent to silent very quickly
I draw self portraits of my heart
To show her that I care
A care that was viciously taken away by the act of bigotry
Music is the only nurturer
I sing to her everyday
I must relieve the pain with the mending of spiritual words
And a feeling of safety that comes within