When I did prison time
I self-surrendered in exchange
for pink oleanders in my cell.
I bit my tongue to learn
the art of lying. I passed
the days by counting murderers
across the hall and dreamt
of riding my bike through a grove
of trees, the queen of hearts
stuck between the spokes; noisy
keys running over bars. And when
it was just too much to bear I ate
the flowers instead of food and wrote
the names of everyone I’ve loved
on the wall and yours was there