From my paper journal, written during poetry writing class yesterday:

Crucifixion

a nail is to wire
as grief is to loneliness:
something has been done
a thing that is has been transformed
into something still itself
yet instrumental
the wire now nail will penetrate
as the loneliness now grief does.

loneliness is an itch we feel
we can ease with a little gentle rubbing,
a little more, there under the arm
above the short ribs, a little more,
and more, until that spot gets raw
but you don't quite want to stop
this is love
and more now you're scratching,
wire helps, stiff wire, wire
that breaks the skin, muscle
contracts, clenches around the wire,
and it slides between ribs, penetrates
the chest, stops where the heart
meets the spine. The heart beats
around it. Each breath catches.
Paralysis ensues.
This is love.