Friday, November 21, 2025

Cosmetic Damage


all that paper skin circling the eyes 
gives in first, it claws its way 

from the corners as time marches
its trumpets over your dermis

get cool with the crumbling 
temple, or get obsessed

with tighteners and tossed treasure
to see yourself swimming
 
in the fountain at a city square
where women emerge uncracked

surgeons applaud their faces
with dotted lines, marvelous

one suspects it’s a fine line 
between bloom and reborn

no stem-cell serum 
can remove
your scars, which are 
the body’s memory

it’s not like you
can massage a filler
into the crevices and forget
 
the profound sorrow
in a rejuvenated wrinkle


______________________
Friday Writing #204: The most expensive garment

5 comments:

  1. I am most drawn by the second to last stanza. I think a lot of people wish it could be as easy as rubbing in a filler and forgetting. But memories are what make us, well, us. At least I think they're a big part of it. I wouldn't want to spackle that away.

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  2. I love how the scars are the memories of the body and I agree with Rommy. The body is just a vehicle and hopefully its still going for a while.

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  3. That title sets the scene! All very well said.

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  4. My vanity would like to pull up my double chin and sagging cheeks!

    Your poem reminds me that this is me.

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  5. Let the cracks and wrinkles show you have experienced life

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