Jessica Martini
28 Lines
Diagnosed
a woman
she received poetry
because of the blood
without cycle, no poetry,
she wrote in the sober awareness
following the pain
which had blinded
her to whatever still-life
whatever motion
Without cycle,
no yearning
only
production
of the same results
a victory that is described,
by either the paying customer
or the chief executive officer
someone with gold stars to return
And time-off to give
for agony
A frequent death – a cycle –
ensures an artist not
a worker,
ensures a desperate pilgrimage not
a routine,
ensures
she will notice again.