
Photo by Joshua Ness on Unsplash
Quills
The hedgehog
craves closeness of warmth
and comfort
but it can’t
risk hurting those they care for
or wounding themselves
Dismissive
nature or nurture
combining
avoiding
emotions flatlined and taut
growing defective
Reflective
not seeking the gaze
transparent
apparent
apparitions, illusions
flowing refractions
Subtraction
by adding my quills
I will wound
inaction
pricking with lethal absence
living detachment
Reaction
defies all reason
yes I care
but won’t share
reason, nature can’t undo
an inert hedgehog.
** *
Written for dVerse MTB: Phantom Form — Shadorma, hosted by Gospel Isosceles. Poets have contributed to this prompt here.
*EDITED: to fix the erroneous syllable count. It’s kinda cool what two extra syllables per stanza can do to add a wee bit of spice.