Open Up

The reluctant eagerness to dissect—

what are you afraid of

​

Lay me down

Open up

Slice the first layer of skin, crack my ribcage

  gently, maybe, feverish, 

and dig dig dig dig there has to be something

 

there has got to be some worth buried 

somewhere

deep there

underneath the blood clots and bile,

something I can call mine

to show off, with pride

 

Don’t be afraid

To squash my liver, tangle the intestine

drum, finger, kiss please, steal

do what you must with my insides

Paint my colors

let them talk

make them lie

rip off the best of me

  whatever it is

give me a story

one you think I’d like

 

squeeze the blood out of the heart and listen if

   it is truly hollow or

   is eternally paused between 

the doubt

and the silence.

Ana García is a Mexican English major, currently interested in translation studies and creative writing. Most of her previous work consists of short stories and plays. She has recently become fascinated with poetry, and hopes to explore newer parts of her voice with it. She currently lives in Mexico City, and expects to (finally) get her undergraduate diploma with her dissertation on Wuthering Heights sometime this year. You can find her on Medium @anagldc.