Hangman's Curse

Start with a body
A head, two arms, two legs
And inside the body there are bones
38 in each foot
27 in each hand
24 ribs reach around
16 in each wrist
14 in each ankle
10 in each shoulder
10 in each hip
 
Every time you feel doubt
Every time you feel fear
Every time you feel pain
Every suspicion
That something isn’t right
One breaks
 
May not seem like much at first
A little pain in the shoulder
A little pain in the knee
We ignore as we get older
Thinking
This happens to everybody
 
You fall in love
You might get married
You want to have kids
The doctor says you can’t
Snap
 
He says he’s sorry
He say we’ll figure it out
Then he stops
Saying I love you
Snap
 
As each rib cracks
You are reminded of what you aren’t
Pretty enough
Smart enough
Healthy enough
Snap
 
They’re coming faster now
Hardly a breath in between
Heart contractions
Pieces of the hangman fall off
Dripping
How’d I get to this broken place
 
He pulls away
He looks at you, eyes shadowed in black
Is it possible
He’s broken all the bones in his back?
There are 33 back there
33 that might have cracks
 
You cannot reach out
When all those bones are gone
You cannot step forward
When all those bones are broken
You cannot even cry
Because all your ribs have shattered
 
There’s nothing left on the platform
So is there anything left between us
We’ve both lost this game
Every single round
Our bodies hang lifeless
The hangman’s curse wins again