Crushed petals still bite

The system never taught you this

that you could gash the throat of a whispy cloud

pressure a marshmallow to burst its hide

that you could slash a rainbow's wrists and make it bleed

or inspire a butterfly to commit homicide

that gentle flowing water could turn into a blade of steel

or a fairy come to crave the flesh of dolphins

Did you know that the fragrance of a rose can transform into a theif

a Jain monk be driven to strap on a bomb

or the most generous heart drawn to sacrifice its nearest kin

No exam has prepared you for that vision of horror

when your empty breath echoes back an avalanch of stars

No training has exercised your heart to withstand the million javelins

hurtling out from the one who trusted you

or to hold back the tsunami of agony arising from that ocean deep with grief

from the volcanic blanket of sulfuric ash thick with crushing shame

like the jaws of a skull clamping shut on your slimy tongue

in a Judas kiss that castrates the voice you never used

Beware of stretching an elastic thread
too long

for it just might snap