rebirth.

i’m a white-knuckled dog
trapped in the corner of the room,
trembling like a flagpole in a hurricane.

caged in flammable skin,
i want to bleed this body dry.
i don’t want to pay for other people’s sins,

i don’t want to be afraid
of catching my own reflection
and only seeing someone else’s leftovers.

there is something ugly,
something rotten inside of me,
something planted which i can’t cut out.

Helga Floros is the author of MELODRAMA (ghost city press 2018) and wants everyone to have a good day every day. they have work in occulum, peach mag, tenderness lit, & elsewhere. they tweet @helgafloros.