Backache

Image from Pixabay.

Each morning I awake to feel you,
Sharp, pulsating, and vengeful —
Tight, red cords of muscle
Pulling together to form a knot
Between my shoulder blades,
Aligned with my spine.
There you punch and kick and bite
Like a newborn infant crying
For my attention.
I rise to carry you, stuck on my back,
Heavy, growing like a weed.
I can’t reach to touch you, calm you,
I can only suffer as I endure you wailing,
Forcing me to hunch over, and
Battering the tears out of my eyes.
I cannot escape you and
I am trapped in knowing that
Only the hands that spin the knot
Are the ones that can massage it away.

All Of Me