MODEL FACES
Poem by Steven Borg
Illustration by Lottie LigginsSwords can carve them; slice and dice them,
Make a mess of that pretty face,
War can grind them, wine and dine them,
Make a meal of that dangling bait.
Age can wear them; torment and tear them,
Court the contours of every crevice,
Time can trace them, trail and tame them,
Drain the vanity from the artifi ce.
Disease can deform them; doom and destroy them,
Warp features beyond means,
Mutations can dwarf them, maul unmourn them,
Beset a beast of betrayed genes.
Obsession can wither them; leech and lesion them,
Leave such scars as lip imprints,
Smooches will sand them, erode and corrode them,
Entrench an ugliness beyond its remits.
Yet beauty can brighten them; beseech and blind them,
Reveal a warrior resolve within,
Beauty can restore them, womb and warm them,
And beauty faces the heart within.