Return To Innocence

Tears streamed down kohl-lined eyes

Black trails down tear ravaged face

I wail against the heavens, naked and broken

Water fails to wash me clean. My impurity

Stains like ink on my soul; steam is useless

The night of my disillusionment looms

Forged and branded in time memories

Water drops jolt me as I drift away

I stand in front of the mirror

And a stranger stares right back

Pain-filled eyes set in a youthful lined face

Bitter laughter pry cruelly from pursed lips

My former glory seems a distant past

Only death is solace; my return to innocence

The deadly virus already staked its claim

Its latent power not yet fully unleashed

It eats into my soul as termites’ does wood

My life force drains; gaunt features belly age

Day blur into day, the nights seem never-ending

Jeering faces swim past as I walk by

The scarlet letter branded without trial

They shrink back in the face of my leprosy

I am shunned and shut off like a monster

While faceless ones roam free unshadow by eyes

It does not matter, I will be silent soon

Give up, the mirror cracks; jagged pieces fights

Give up, my flesh has not yielded

Give up, my reflection slowly gasps in pain

Convulsive laughter echoes madness and desolation

I can’t stop, the fates played their joke on me

It cannot get any worse. I am wrong

I see a candle or maybe an illusion

Either ways, it dawns- the damage is done

My womb is a vessel for unplanned birth.

- Charis