PURPLE [the sequel]

Purple
the color of bruises
inflicted with intention
or without
pulses with heat
at the onset

But purple melts away
with time
fades to green around the edges
Healing feathers out.
yellow creeps in-
distills
into lovely
scars

Raised memories of
the purple
that once burned
so brightly
signaling
unexpected trauma
at the impact site.

Ground zero for:
chances taken,
risk calculated as worthy,
pain deemed worth receiving,
wounds welcomed into a life
Regardless
of how much
they might hurt
in the end

Purple’s flipping over
into other form
bookend expressions
Yin & Yang
balancing out the red
& the blue
in between

The two that eased
quite close
but could never
completely
disappear

The dash between
two purples
as something:
recorded in journals,
documented in photos
transcribed
on
blank paper

Details growing fuzzy
like the border
of a bruise
the farther they
venture out
from the center
of
the wound

To toss a glance back
over a shoulder
wince, cry, remember-
long for, smile, cringe-
savor, revisit, miss-
cherish

Like long-lost bruises
painted over
with
virgin skin