he soap slowly foams around me;
I scrub.

I was a child playing outside,
and I close my eyes to dream –
dreaming of red roses
laying at my feet.
Dreaming of crystalline rhinestones
sparkling in my hair.
Dreaming of fine dining
in a lavish castle.

The soap foams around me; I scrub.

I still play outside
as the clouds cry,
eyes wide open to daydream.
Mounds of roses lay at my feet
with painful thorns.
Rhinestones sparkle in my hair
cheaply.
Dining in a lavish castle
with stale taste.

And so –
I scrub.
And scrub.
Smile! I say.

Dream.
Scrub.
Smile.
Repeat.

Only now,
my skin
burns.