Nutshell (poem)
Nutshell
You know a secret that would crack the nut
Yet it’s no secret
When the boredom ends
when every floor has been swept clean
And the doors
The gaping holes
Allowing other hands to touch the walls, eyes
to stare through glass at passersby
The doors
Can now be closed
The windows bare of curtains
Let the light expose
The chipping varnish
The cracking ceiling
In the room where no one goes
Do they ever blame their captors
Only turn against each other
Introduced to the betrayer
Burrows, gorges, like the hornworm
Then in turn becomes the host
The nutshell hatches
Such a marvel that the weight of bones
Lying bones
Can fill a sack
Reduced to ash
Swept clean away like dust
The Nutshell Hatches
Take Your Place
(2014, 2023 Stephanie Foster)