Body Swap

Three months
and my vacated womb
shrinks to the size of a pear
and the little bird
nesting inside my belly is gone      	fledged
to suck at my breast
 
and I miss her body inside my body.
 
Six months
since my belly domed
with the fullness of her,
since my breasts grew heavy
and my spine ached with the weight
of her little life nesting inside me  	this creature
to whom I gave my body
 
this animal body with its quiet keening.
 
Nine months
since this body left its mark
revealed its dark and ancient secrets,
and my womb, like a bruised pear,
shrank and I learned to forget
the pain, the unraveling                 	loving
 
 
this heart of hers nesting inside my heart.