Is That It?

My God never noticed me
Nor did he see my sins
So I plucked the apple from the tree
And peeled the skin from its tender flesh
with my teeth
I lapped up the juice that ran down my fingers
like a starving dog
I have never known a greater hunger
Than the hunger to be touched
with kindness
I took a ferry across the lake
And wondered what it would feel like
To have my head held under the water
If the hand tangled in my hair
Pushing me down
Would be as gentle as a lovers
My desire to die was an inherited trait
From my Mother
Like my red hair
Like my freckles
We have the same crooked teeth
But I did not get her kindness
I squeeze the last bit of toothpaste
from the bottom of the tube
And ask God if he forgives us for the things
we didn’t do

---

By Sarah Heart

An international relations student living in Texas with three small children in the form of cats. She has recently taken up drinking coffee despite hating the taste.