No Assembly Required Poem by Kira Bloom

I lay in wait for a verdict, a verdict no other can decide
But it doesn’t stop the wayward voices from rushing my mind
Memories crowd to peer at the carnage on this familiar bed
How many times has my heart been there, declared impotent
Unable to work again.
Worse how many times has it whispered, “there is hope yet”
Decreed among the doubtful “I will rise again.”
I wince from recollection
When in calm agony its lecture begins
It is what it is
Doubts nor blame can alter this
So why place it
Happiness is a scar
Trial or time takes all things
Release the pain, and measure only the love you keep
Bare your marks with pride
This truth filters through so shattered I doubt my entirety is there
But faults and what ifs will not change the damage that is
The pieces hemorrhage making me envy the broken
Time teaches there are worse things, betrayal, selfishness, and my current condition
So when I rise again, I ask only this
Be kind
Respect, truth, or a blade will suffice
Don’t use a hammer of fear or lies in your strike
as have learned yet again that no matter how small, pieces still shatter
I ask simply for a straight slice
Love and pain on either side
Joy to keep and hate to leave
No pieces to be placed, No doubts to conspire
Give me a clean break
No assembly required