Crank (Crank 1)

but they couldn’t disguise

the stench of death.

2) My water breaking, mid-Walmart…

Contractions,

uterine lightning

bolts, striking

immediately

and not letting

up for 18 hours.

And …

The #1 Worst Thing

about those seven months:

My steady, needful, forever

relationship with the monster.

Learning

that “addiction” is much more

than a buzzword.

Discovering

how very much it applied

to my “me first” psyche.

Struggling

not to give in to inner voices

much stronger than my own.

Winning

most of the time, gritting my

teeth and “just saying no.”

Losing

in those moments

when the world

I’d created for myself