Floating On Ice

Identity

The task is identity.
There is an “I” 
In identity, but no “I” 
In “team”, no “I” in “self,”
No “I” in “me,” 
Or you, or he, or she, or they,
(and so forth).
It is simply a line that draws
The boundary of the inside
And outside, where the expanses
Of people open the societal galaxy
And we are subject to the wilderness
Of the solitary walk of life. 

We must be, we must feel, we must
Think, love, hate, regret, struggle,
Live, and die all within the inner
Boundary of the line; nature’s
Consciousness at its finest and lowest,
The universe wanting to suffer the pains
Of being and the gnaw of the parasitic
Teeth of time that wear us down. 

This is the task appointed to the “I.” 
And I, as the speaker of this poem, stand
As an exemplary example of a tainted
Consciousness and a botched experiment. 
Last time they did an autopsy they found
Thumbtacks in my small intestine. Sunflower stems 
Were found stuck in my throat, bird feathers
Growing in my hands, and violet
Mercury from the sea in my veins. 
A long chain of nametags run
The trains of signals from the limbs
To the head, and gather at the station to ride
Out again and again. It’s a bee’s nest
Of black honey, poisoned with gasoline.
The tear ducts are filled with molasses
And shampoo, the mouth full of soap.
My heartstrings are aluminum wound,
Steel core and covered in rust
From pomegranate juice. My bones
Are empty like those that fly, but full with maple syrup
That was supposed to be for my stomach,
Which is now a leather briefcase
For sundials.

“What is this sack of filth?”
“What have you done?”
“What have you been doing?”
“What is wrong with you?”

What am I supposed to say?
This is me, this is the “I!”
Don’t hide the shame! 
This is the “I” in its complete glory,
The broken and disfigured, distorted
And corrupted, worthless and hopeless
Result of the human experiment.
So what if those name tags
Spell out your name and face
In jargon; don’t throw away the one that says
“Lover,” and don’t throw away 
The one that says “Disloyal.” 
Keep the ones that say “fool,”
“Brave,” “arrogant,”
The one that says
“Human.”

There is no “I” in “human,”
But this is the “I”
In “identity.”