Get Angel Wing Tattoos Like It’s the Late 1990s

she asks me why
i am collecting
tattoos

careful dots
grey shadows
my dog’s face
a witch, flowers
mother mary, leaves
wolves, a turn of phrase

i say:
i’m less attached to my body
i almost lost it so many times

cancer scares
car accidents
attempted murder

i honor it like replanting seeds
painting it with tributes
survival vines, petals stitching
my skin back together

my body, the myth,
the hero lives on.

Stephanie Athena Valente lives in Brooklyn, NY. Her published works include Hotel Ghost, waiting for the end of the world, and Little Fang (Bottlecap Press, 2015–2019). She has work included in Reality Hands, Maudlin House, and Cosmonauts Avenue. She is the associate editor at Yes, Poetry. Sometimes, she feels human. stephanievalente.com.

Header Image by jiroe from Unsplash