Poem II for Anne Sexton- Dael Orlandersmith

The curve of my Pluto sister's back
is crooked
as are her smiles
which are interwoven w/ cigarette smoke and
glitter dust powder
Her perfume is the bathwater
of faded party girls
w/ broken heels and hearts to match
and their once seductive dances are now
comic poses
and toothless smiles lie underneath
cheap, loose, lipsticked mouths
and their once glittering gowns are
shabby dresses
The curbe of my Pluto
sister's back is due to
benzedrine and young boys
that holler obscenities and the
alcohol content in a glass
of gin and the
voices in her head that
Scream, "Kill yourself!"
and my sister,
She heeds this call and
Sprawls
w/ broken cocktail glass in hand
dismembered
rather like a shattered, painted
baby doll

just breathe