battered heart

Wrapped
In protective
Gauze
My heart
Beats
Limping jaggedly
Hesitantly
And telling
Spots of blood
Dot
It’s snow-white
Covering.
Every day
The sound
Is less muffled
Less chaotic
Less irregular
And the binding
Grows looser
With
Each pulse.
The red
No longer
Fresh
No new
Scarlet blooms
Appear.
Cradled gently
Cupped protectively
Within my chest
Reassuring
It with
A tender
Touch.
Reluctant
To unwrap
Expose
And bare
The tender
New skin
Beneath
The layers
Of fabric armor.
Susceptible
To new
Contact
Raw
Consciousness
Unexpected
Passion.