Repairable?

Sh hands him a curved vase,

Heart shaped and ruby red,

Smooth and porcelain.

He holds it tightly for a while,

And then loosely for a while longer.

The first time he drops it, she catches it --

He promises to be more careful.

It falls again, and the paint chips,

Showing the fragile ivory underneath.

She does her best to repaint the blemish,

And when she returns it to his purportedly clumsy hands,

He seems pleased.

But he drops it again, and this time he watches it fall,

Watches a crack scamper from lip to equator.

She swallows her unease at his disregard and again

Repairs her gift to him, or tries to.

She hands it to him.

He immediately smashes it to the floor, angrily.

She sees the vase shattered, un-repairable, and sobs.

He walks past her, shards turning to dust beneath his heels.

She walks to the door -- but it is locked, and the handle has been broken off.

Author's Note

For English class -- it's a metaphor regarding domestic abuse.

Initially, the woman will refuse to realize the relationship is beyond repair, and when she does, escaping from it can be very difficult.

Reviews

[i.am.the.sun.]

the author's note at the end cheapens it a bit, it's a pretty easy metaphor to get thanks to the second line (but don't change it!) and this is written very very well! god damn, i try metaphors like this and they just blow so hard. good job! still impress me with everything i read of yours. keep it up!