I Think I Have Lady Macbeth Syndrome

I hold my guilt between my teeth like I’m at the dentist / It drills deep into me / She tells me to open wide, but I bite down / For when I speak it becomes sanguinary / When they take x-rays, they say my jaw is too tight / Can’t they hear what’s in my head? / During the extraction the blood flows too freely / It’s willing, waiting / They put the tooth in my hand, and my lifeblood decays. / Take a shower; it will help. / My mouth is washed out — tinged pink / But nothing bothers me than carmine /

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Cathrina Jakeman (20) is a writer and student currently studying English Literature and Creative Writing at the Colorado State University of Pueblo. Her poetry can be found in the Afterpast Review. When she's not writing (which is rare), Cathrina can be found at band practice, inhaling words of all kinds, and hanging out with her cat, Henry.