The Cougar Review

By Savanna

She lays on the table, a surgeon’s gaze 

Her own body, a canvas, in a sterile daze 

She makes the first incision, a careful cut

Exposing the secrets, she’s long tried to shut

Her heart, a muscle once full of life 

Now lies before her a withered, worn-out strife

A maze of scar tissue, a web of pain 

A symbol of the damage she’s endured in vain

She probes the chambers, a detective’s eye

Searching for clues to the tears she cried 

The valves, once fluid, now stiff and tight 

A reflection of the love she’s struggled to ignite 

The arteries clogged with the weight of her fears 

The ventricles, worn from the tears she’s held back for years 

The heart a mirror of the life she’s lived 

A testament to the pain, she’s survived

She examines the damage, a scientist’s gaze 

A heart, once full of hope, now in a daze

She wonders how it came to this 

A heart,

So broken,

So worn out,

So dismissed