Raw.
We use it
To describe
Meat
Milk
Dough
That hasn’t been subjected
To scalding heat to make it safe
To consume;
But it’s also
For skinned knees
Burns
Open wounds
And broken hearts.
It’s for when the pain is new
When the lines are skewed
And you can’t make out
What’s up
Or down.
You can rub something raw
You can have a raw, raspy voice,
Especially
When your feelings are rough
And exposed,
And there’s no easy way
To transpose the pain
Into words.
Sometimes all that makes it right
Is time:
Time in the oven
Time under the band-aid
Time under the sun,
Time for the bread to bake
And the hurts to heal.
Time for the vocal cords
To recover
And for strength
To return.