The Old Woman In That House Of Hate.... Poem by RIC BASTASA

she makes a
scarecrow out of us

the girl on the yellow
road has turned into
a witch

she only knows the tin man
and the hay stack

does she ever forget that
beyond the story is us?

we were shaped as swords
you the strongest jagged edge
dagger that i know of

she makes a fool out of us
and we retaliate for we know how

all the while and in the coming
days of her remaining life
she has died, when she rots, there
is no need for any ritual
no flowers, no funeral dirge
we know what not to do
to make us alive, her bones when
the turn to dust, shall be given
to the winds. She was never with
us and we never belong to her.