Emergency

if poetry’s in a state of emergency
and you are the self-appointed medic
does this make me the patient
suffering from the general malaise?

should I sit back and relax
while you assure me “this won’t hurt a bit,”
and do what you have to do
so that I’ll pull through
with a profound appreciation
for life itself?

or should I just try to heal myself
with words slowly chosen
and printed on a clean, lined page
struggling to make sense of the senseless
and wondering if you left last night
with a twinge of regret?

–

Laura Roberts is the Editor of Black Heart Magazine.