joseph merrick’s bones
you are not an animal
the echo of your words
shames us
strips us bare of all
that makes us human
you are not an animal
we carry your pain
in our disfigurement
we are
misshapen
in our calcified
mausoleum
we are just bones
mistaken
you are not an animal
you can reason
you can forgive
look closely see
how we hang here
naked and forlorn
can you remember
how we possess
how we connect
your every moment
you are not an animal
we are dense
and misguided
we are trying
to give you a
gift of the
gods