August

this could be a tale

or a story wrapped in a tale

or a testimony speaking

of what is happening right now

in front of all of our faces

or maybe it is a tale

made story

made testimony

turned eulogy

because the teller is no longer  

here

even though she wears that body  

a mask

a premonition of what is to come

maybe what has happened

would have happened anyway

there was no other outcome

no other foothold safe haven

maybe broken is a noun

that wears her name

maybe she never knew

what her name meant

if she did

maybe that

could have made the difference

and maybe she didn’t care

never could

biology or circumstance

maybe there are too many factors

to factor

and maybe the sound of family

on her tongue hurt too much

to taste

and in her regret

the only thing she felt

was fist and slander

and not you,

not anymore

the tale told wrong

the story without

a believable happy ending

the testimony told through

clenched teeth

the obituary written

before the death

before the killing

before you knew

what it meant

all of it

before you realized
that you couldn’t hold the love

so you had to rid yourself of it

of us

completely

bury it all

call it a goodbye

call it a crucifixion