run me through the machine
to pull the metal out of me
to cut it out and make me soft
and clean

my stomach is a hiding place
for prayers i do not dare to pray
come home over the oceans
and stay

we'll plant a home in long rows
of farmer fields and topsoil
and from the ground our children will grow
without the sounds of telephones

and each night we will fall asleep
our bodies warm and sighing
no clocks to set, no hours to keep
heavy quilts and window screens

in envelopes i sealed my love
with patient hands and patient tongue
i wrote your name in permanent
ink

across the world in paper homes
airplanes will bring these guts and bones
i carved out of my skin in hopes
of truth