Papier-mâché Heart

My papier-mâché heart

barely held together -

By my crunchy façade.

My paper feelings

Inked on my sleeves

Ready for a fresh start

A gleam in my cold eyes

This may amount to something.

My tentative maybe's -

[And then -]

Paper pyres

Paper kills

Paper fires

Blood spills

Paper bags

Paper bodies

Name tags

Futile sorries -

And that's how it is -

Two steps forward

A giant leap backwards

Into a ditch -

Defences breached

Trenches dug -

Dreams and sleep

my psychedelic drugs

And so - my wary brain retreats.

Admittedly, once again

deceived -

by my papier-mâché heart

So easily.

And so - I take my 'feelings'

off my sleeves

Make several copies


just in case -

And I put them in a binder


neatly tucked away.

Gathering dust on the top shelf -

I smile to myself,

wistfully elated -

'Now my paper self is safe.'

This wonderful poem was written at the request of lyttlejoe.