Left Hand Lost

he left hand is

we always say

the demon devil's side

the left had does

the dirty work

the shameful things

you hide

judas kissed the left cheek of christ

it's satan's special mark

there were no left-footed animals

allowed on noah's ark

left-handed people are impure

they go against the grain

left-handed children

play with themselves

and drive themselves insane

i was born left-handed

but the nuns where i went to school

they said it wasn't right so they

broke me of it

and now i'm right-handed

just like i'm supposed to be

and now

i'm fine

i'm just fine

really

really

but sometimes

i get so low so low

sometimes

i get so depressed

as though i lost

a part of me that loved me

the part that knew me best

the child in me that cried

to be cherished

the side of me

that tried to be my friend

in the heart of me was living

and loving

but it perished

and i'll never be

completely me again

my right had fills the china teacups

and needlepoints with old maid aunts

my right hand clings to rosary beads

and waters dying plants

but it's never painted a picture

nor has it run for president

my left hand

might have done these things

if its roots

had not been bent

a sculptor

a poet

it might have been

instead of a useless thing

to decorate with bangles and bracelets

and my mother's wedding ring

something

it might have accomplished

or nothing

but now i'll never know

oh

my lost

my left

my natural hand

my god

i miss you so