she won’t say how she broke them
but the boys don’t hold the doors for her
anymore and nobody signs her cast
her armpits ache from the handles
and she feels as hollow as the numb
caverns inside the plaster that pinch her
and the bones will set crooked —
her legs perpetually as bent
as her mind — and his wrung neck
which neither splint nor plaster
can hold fast or bind any stiffer
than his own rigid musculature
Explanation: I found that list of offbeat phrases in the “Strange Visitors” contest awhile back amusing, and began to think of them as titles for poems…I may do more based on the others, if/when time permits. (Hint: click on the “Weblog Exclusive” department to read all the others.)