wayward girl

Katherine McLeod Searle

grunge jeans topped off
with a shrunken tee shirt
designed for maximum show
baby fat navel and breasts out there

black nail polish chipped and ugly
pouty lips limned
in matching death tones
her garish kool-aid hair
defies criticism

eyes blaze with anger
constant as the sun
voice tones blare, modulated
by street codes

belligerence a necessary part
of the package
accessorized with the lessons
of ignorance and poverty

sexuality frenzied and meaningless
counting coup in blind gropings
trapped by circumstances
and choices made only by default

the faces are interchangeable
one in the front row 1st period
another last seat 3rd period

beneath the carefully crafted exterior
the real faces hide
faces slapped down by abuse,
poverty, neglect
faces screaming
hear me

been there
done that

Katherine McLeod Searle