The Most Organized Disorder
There are three of us inside this place
Separated by behavior we share the same face
Each of us assigned a fraction of the day
Can’t tell you their names or they’ll go away
I’ll call the first one Anne-my organized self
She’s the one who fixed the books on my shelf
Vacuumed for 3 hours, scrubbed for five
The ticking clock makes her feel alive
The clock that used to cause my eardrums pain
Is now the only thing that keeps us (in?)sane
She scrubs my teeth in the same manner that she scrubs my floor
Hard and frantic making my gums sore
Water than toothpaste is the beginning of our ritual
I try to remember when this got so habitual
Floss and rinse with mouthwash; she likes the burn
Spitting out blood-tinted water is no concern
Clean the bathroom till it’s good as new
Wonder why mouthwash is a teeth staining blue
Would you like to meet personality number two?
We’ll call her Jasmine
Almost did when we met
She’s most skilled at not feeling regret
Yes-that’s one of the reasons I like her best
I let her cut my hair because I knew it was a test
‘I’ll stay if you let me-leave if you don’t”
“Don’t go-don’t stop”
“Alright I won’t”
Snip-Snip- of goes the hair
Jasmine doesn’t care
You know she’s out to play
If I wear lipstick that day
Neat like Anne but not quite so obsessive
In place of that though she’s increasingly possessive
And I don’t mind – neither does Anne
Perfection is her primary demand
Good is no good
Great- not enough
But shields my exterior
When home life gets rough
She doesn’t like boys
And she doesn’t like girls
But she likes to straighten
My waywardly curls
The years don’t distance us- thirteen, sixteen, and twenty-seven
Sharing a limbo our personal heaven
Roommates in the apartment of my brain
I’m not insane
Can’t finish this poem-I have to obey
Won’t let them run away- clean and study they say
Amongst us three it’s feared and it’s known
When they leave our cage I’ll be locked up alone
Separated by behavior we share the same face
Each of us assigned a fraction of the day
Can’t tell you their names or they’ll go away
I’ll call the first one Anne-my organized self
She’s the one who fixed the books on my shelf
Vacuumed for 3 hours, scrubbed for five
The ticking clock makes her feel alive
The clock that used to cause my eardrums pain
Is now the only thing that keeps us (in?)sane
She scrubs my teeth in the same manner that she scrubs my floor
Hard and frantic making my gums sore
Water than toothpaste is the beginning of our ritual
I try to remember when this got so habitual
Floss and rinse with mouthwash; she likes the burn
Spitting out blood-tinted water is no concern
Clean the bathroom till it’s good as new
Wonder why mouthwash is a teeth staining blue
Would you like to meet personality number two?
We’ll call her Jasmine
Almost did when we met
She’s most skilled at not feeling regret
Yes-that’s one of the reasons I like her best
I let her cut my hair because I knew it was a test
‘I’ll stay if you let me-leave if you don’t”
“Don’t go-don’t stop”
“Alright I won’t”
Snip-Snip- of goes the hair
Jasmine doesn’t care
You know she’s out to play
If I wear lipstick that day
Neat like Anne but not quite so obsessive
In place of that though she’s increasingly possessive
And I don’t mind – neither does Anne
Perfection is her primary demand
Good is no good
Great- not enough
But shields my exterior
When home life gets rough
She doesn’t like boys
And she doesn’t like girls
But she likes to straighten
My waywardly curls
The years don’t distance us- thirteen, sixteen, and twenty-seven
Sharing a limbo our personal heaven
Roommates in the apartment of my brain
I’m not insane
Can’t finish this poem-I have to obey
Won’t let them run away- clean and study they say
Amongst us three it’s feared and it’s known
When they leave our cage I’ll be locked up alone