Sore spots that linger just above my belly button

for far too long     red brands and blisters popped

 

and turned a stiff and glossy bronze     eventually

these will heal     eventually the burn will fade

 

only with the faintest of outlines left in that tender

skin     perhaps only visible to me     but that will

certainly be enough     having to recall this grease

 

and gluttony every time I dry myself after a shower

every time my shirt rides up as I reach for something

 

heavy over my head     every time my wife runs her

fingers over my abdomen     tracing my map of scars