Black Sheep

by Rachel Harrison

Easy to forget stars are mortal; they’re born, and they die. They shine for legacy.

I was jealous that she got to be a dumb, giddy sheep,

It’s a cruelty of life that we can never protect our own innocence. We can only watch ourselves lose it in retrospect. Scream at memories.

Hope is like candy, I thought. It’s sweet in the moment, until it rots your teeth out.

I found it interesting that those who believed themselves righteous only ever cared about those who agreed with them, and were keen to let those who didn’t suffer whatever brutal fate.