by Julia Rox —
I.
“you are a minotaur inside”
posted 22 hours ago// body: athletic
“You have an inner strength
and beauty that few possess”
Was it a beauty you wanted to possess?
Or did it possess you? rendering you
powerless like
Pasiphae, who fell so madly in love with
a beast that she could not
think of anything else.
II.
Posted 3 days ago// age: 28
“I stripped in your living room on
our first date: I wish I could go back and re
live that moment when I just started taking
my clothes off in front of you. Hope
you remember it fondly, too.”
Did she see the birthmark on your thigh
shaped like a closed umbrella?
Did your skin shine like a white
bull, too beautiful to sacrifice?
III.
“Down the street. .beautiful….from Oregon”
Will you go to Daedalus,
looking to get closer
to what you want?
“….plz help heal me. ..email me back”
Sometimes
if you get too close to the sun
you will fall into the ocean. Sometimes
if you get too close to what you want
you make a monster or
you become a monster,
trapped in a maze, and with all of us,
looking for healing.
IV.
“Where are you, Rebecca? Are you ok? – m4w”
Posted 12 hours ago// height: 5’4’’
Are you standing in your kitchen
on a Friday night
where the neighbors smoking on
the fire escape can see you
naked, making tea with your cat?
They ash their cigarettes into empty beer
bottles and they also wonder about you.
So many mazes to get lost in.
So many bottles
lost at sea.
V.
“I hope you found the right
boots that don’t hurt your feet”
I hope you know that
I am also a minotaur inside.
I too
have found myself with
no natural source of nourishment and
devoured humans for sustenance.
I too
have followed
my need for human flesh.
VI.
“And, if nothing else, I really want to know the color
of your eyes as they look into mine.
I bet you a bowl of soup and a
hunk of bread that they’re as lovely as I
imagine them to be.”
Yes, her eyes are lovely,
her voice is rich and
smooth, and her hands are not soft.
She will ask of you
more than you
are willing to give.
VII.
“I saw u on hwy goin to Rathdrum on sunday
On my way to the hairdresser…I realize u called me
On my birthday in May and on Christmas
Does Becky know u r doin this?”
w4m//location: united states
Does Becky know? Does
Becky put away the boots that hurt your feet
when you come home? Would she walk to you
from here to Crete to keep you from sacrifice?
when
you send a message in a bottle,
do you think it will ever reach the shore?
VIII.
“It has been difficult.” m4w
It has been difficult
to learn how to leave things behind. Even now,
every time I get off the subway I turn around
and make sure I’m not leaving anything
in the seats.
But we are always leaving something behind
always flying the black sails of death as we go.
IX.
Posted about 3 hours ago//status: single
“15MAY79 – m4w
That’s your birthdate. It’s funny how love works.
It’s been well over five years since we’ve communicated,
yet you still pop into my head from time to time.”
I hope you know that
you are still a minotaur inside. I hope
you walk a thousand miles
with a thousand miles of yarn,
trailing behind you.
X.
Posted 9 hours ago//body type: slim
“Tell me what kinda car you were driving.”
Tell me where I left my trail of yarn,
what color it was, and what material.
XI.
You have fallen asleep.
“I knew then that I had fallen.
You were not ready, so I stayed,
But peace is coming, believing that you are
waiting for the right time to return to me”
I want to return
but the yarn has all unraveled,
and I am on my way home
without you.
XII.
Sometimes we forget to fly
the white flag ahead of us
“Same place we met last week.
I’ll keep checking for you”m4m//location: park
You can keep checking, but
there will not be a sign.
You can keep checking.
You can throw yourself into the sea.