Before the medicine cabinet

Shame fastened itself 
Neatly on the shelf. 
Wide-eyed glimpse; 
And a glass of festering bitterness. 
With that, 
Ached the discomfort 
Of thoughts in coughing staccato. 
Accompanying the red pill, blood gushed
Up from the toes, like tides
They patched across the cheeks
'Til the pale tablets took effect 
And slipped a discord. 
They took over—took away 
The bursting harmony—neck stiffened
Terribly. The 
Sickly wet capsules encapsulated 
His shaking silhouette.

Dale Chou
2001-11-16