we taught recombinant dna
to recombine,
turning tumors into birds
that freed themselves
from the cages of our bodies,
misery flying out the window,
a flock of blackbirds
that only comes back later
to tap at the pain,
begging for a few more scraps of us?

or never returned,
burrowing down into the ground
like certain owls
to sing their own dark songs
almost muffled by the earth
in their mouths?

(Source: strangehorizons.com, via weissewiese)