Metaphorically Speaking

Photograph courtesy of I. L Wittenberger, November 27, 2023, Boise, ID

Love once struck me, 
love as brutal 
as a closed fist 
against the chin, 
raising my jaw 
upward, 
and causing 
my teeth to shake 
in their roots

Of course, the blow 
almost killed me
I was left reeling and
dizzy

I still carry
a dark bruise 
on my heart 
where something soft 
congealed in the chambers
and waits silently for another blow 
to ruin me.

metaphorically speaking, of course.