Natural Defenses

An armadillo equips itself

      with ossified plates, the hardening

of its bones over eons.

      At some point

the porcupine became obsessed

      with converting hair follicles

into barbed javelins

      to dissuade predators

or the merely curious.

      At this moment

you possess

      few defense mechanisms,

like a fawn

      taught to crouch very still

in the shadow of tall grass,

      hoping not to be seen,

or a chameleon that claims

      the patterns of its surroundings

for its own skin. I’m sorry that,

      tangled in these white sheets,

ensnared with tubes and monitors,

      with cuffs that encase your legs

squeezing and pumping

      blood through your veins—

there’s no place to hide.

      I wish I could promise you

cover, a thick barricade

      of brambles and thorns.

I wish I could promise you

      you’ll never blend in

to this environment.

      All I can promise

is to watch over you at night,

      some form of natural defense,

till you’re strong enough again

      to defend yourself.