'Scrimshaw' & 'help me help me [...]': Two Poems by Hannah Madonna

SCRIMSHAW

I pulled a single rib

from the soft clay of your chest,

from the flesh-moored cage of your body.

And then in secret I carved

the rib I stole -

hollowed it out,

in sharp smooth clean lines

I wrote your name

in symbols we never speak.

I made a fine-tuned instrument

delicate and cold and white -

You quivered like a reed

as I played the music of your bones.

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HELP ME HELP ME PLEASE I AM TRAPPED I AM LOST I AM MIRED IN DARKNESS AND PAIN AND THE TIGHT GRIP OF A MONSTER'S SILKS HE IS DRAINING ME SO SLOWLY SUCKING OUT MY LIFE AND NOW EVEN MY VOICE HAS BEEN STOLEN

oh what a lovely place to be

within a web instead of free

my body wrapped up tight and pinned

delicious juices kept within

I have no worries fears or angst

I give dear m r. s p i d e r thanks

such happy days spent as a fly

and now it is my time to die

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Hannah Madonna is a writer and librarian who writes about pop culture, nature, and feminism. Her work has appeared in Cauldron Anthology, The Wild Word, Tiny Essays and other publications. She lives in the southern US with her family and their three cats. Find her on Twitter: @hannahwritegood.