The Knot

How I have starved These years of privation Gnaw through my bones To taste bitter freedom Ligatures bind me Lashed to the yoke Beast of burden Bludgeoned by hope That I'll drown in the sun And walk forth in day light Speak my own name Speak truth aloud Sever the knot Let violence unbind Sever the knot Too weak to be prey I made poor quarry Left to die Tied to the millstone Down in the dirt I will crawl Until my legs Can carry me home Bowed and bent But unbroken by neglect Pride pierced through by arrows Sever the knot Let violence unbind Sever the knot What these hands Cannot untie Let the knife Divide Carve the ending Into stone Grind this heart of iron to dust I watch the braid unravel and fall From one I held so beautiful Touch the matted blood Animal sweat Bitterness streaks The corners of my mouth Spit out my bridle Unknot my tongue Speak In freedom Free To doubt If I was bound at all