here’s how:
grab a hold and tear / as if through skin
rip / the frills off
get impatient and angry
cut / through layers and pull out / threads
let stitches run / up and down the skin / like finger tips
fray / the edges / then seam them back up
sew clumsily / visibly
prick / fingers and bite / through the pain
pull tighter and closer
gag / on the excess fabric
press with heat / burn / and wear to bed / then to work the next day
reassemble / with new thread
get complimented for girlish dis/figure/ment
tear / open the fresh seam / then the flesh
re/pair until like new / well-used but not yet used up
split / like a wound underneath the patch
forget and neglect / until paint-stained and torn
when you can no longer see it
pretend it’s not there
