I stitched
the pieces together,
licking the corners like an adulterer; saliva
on paper on cotton on silk.

frayed edges, two button hole eyes
a fresh slit for a mouth.

immediate attention
to the navel
and a line of brown and red
turning yellow at the corners,
two drops of salt solution
dribbled above
like the remnants of a past life.

just a second. just a second.

naked for a dress
i watch her writhe and wriggle
clambering towards the miracle edge of a blade;
contemplating humiliation and the ringing of strange telephones.