Poem: "Rats"

I had rats in my space.

I kept you around for what I hoped

would have been a very long time.

But rodents don't live very long.

Despite always giving you life

you bite the hands that

heal you, feel you, appeal you

And how you gonna tell me

you don't want me to feel

like I'm walking on eggshells

when I walked through fire for you?

I let you into my space, my homes

shared with you my iron sanctuary

and let you meet my darling dears

are my fires too hot for you?

And yet you hold back and hold in

what frustrates you until it's too late

fight tit-for-tat, no solutions for that

walk through flames to get to you

You fulminate, I'll fumigate.

I've little room for ingratiates.

Get out of my space.

My home is no place

for rodents like you.