pained and panicked parents
participate…
they put in part-time patience and
expect persistent payments…
perfumed and peeled
I strip the pen’s permission
to castigate the petals picked…
a pessimistic pitch
whistled from your lips…
you wrestle with the pity and the planets that you orbit…
you plant and play and plea
incinerate your poison…
politely polished fingers
inside polluted mouths…
a pond of possibility
positioned on your pout…