Salvage Me (Poem)

When my heart no longer beats,

And the light has left my eyes,

Don’t despair.

And don’t waste me in the ground.

Take my skin and bind my words,

So you may still touch me,

When you lose yourself in my stories.

Stew my meat,

So you may eat during the long and unforgiving winters.

Use my hollowed bones for wind chimes,

So I may serenade you on a breezy day.

Shave my locks,

So you may mend your clothes and carry me with you always.

Reduce my blood and viscera to fertilizer to help the garden grow,

So I may still lovingly nourish you.

Want me, don’t waste me.

Reclaim me.

Salvage me.