C. Fausto Cabrera was awarded an Honorable Mention in Poetry in the 2016 Prison Writing Contest.
She need not say a word,
through the wonder
of being.
Shielding the savage
her ruddy shell protects
a heart that lights
the wild.
At any time she could’ve flown,
but fascinated, she stayed.
She would not crawl
onto my fingertip,
but she didn’t leave
my side.
In the mirror of her smile
I appeared polished.
How do we expect
to hear what angels speak
when I could not convey
my gratitude to her?
And then,
like everything,
she was gone.