Act I

she's the one, over there in the corner
she used to be a big girl,
but now she's tiny, a shadow or sliver
of her former self,
with more self-esteem under
those adorable dark clothes
than she ever had before.
she would like to look cool -
in the way that chain-smoking seems -
but she values her lungs and the
gentle lucidity of her skin
so she sucks on candy cigarettes
and giggles when people marvel
over the lack of smoke around her.

(25.6.99)

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