Dirtied:

Written By:

Alexis Herrera

I fear my soul has blackened—

Harden by hatred, rusted by resent.

Dirtied, defaced, decayed.

I feel it grow heavier in my body,

Weighed down by grime and muck.

It spews out soot and soil

That make my tongue feel tarnished.

I fear my heart has deflated—

Beaten, battered, bruised.

Offered always unprotected, unprepared.

It lies wilted in my chest,

Blood leaking from its wounds in woe,

Leaving my veins frail and cold

While my mouth fills with copper and soot.

I fear my bones are rotted—

Vile with erosion.

A poisoned black goo enshrouds

My deteriorating skeleton.

It spills from my eyes, my ears, my nose.

I choke on its unrelenting ooze

As my teeth decompose behind my lips.