“Of Truth” by M. Matthews

when you're speeding down the freeway
in mid-july
with your sweaty thighs sticking
to the slick upholstery
and you see a faded bumper sticker that reads
"make abortion safe and accessible"
just remember it's different

it's different than
spreading your legs
in a lifeless clinic
where all the devils are clad in blue

it's different than the
clanging-metal insertion
of a machete-like tube
and the demonic whir of suction
like a plastic bag snagged in a vacuum

it's different than the tearing of human flesh
     the butchering of human hope
     the slaughtering of human life

it's different than speeding down the freeway in mid-july
everything is different
when you're alive