Poem: "Practical Things"

[shiori_makiba]

Thank you everyone for your feedback on “Metamorphosis.” I really appreciate it.

Poem: Practical Things
By shiori_makiba / Ashley Weyer
Sequel to “Metamorphosis”

“The Practical Things”

Having wings was taking some getting used to.
'Which,' Tsubasa reminded herself, 'is to be expected.'
You can't just stick a new body part on someone
and expect everything to be smooth sailing.

It was amazing how much huge wings,
even ones as light as hers,
could affect one's balance.

She had stopped counting
how many times she had ended up on her rear
since the medical staff had allowed her to leave the bed.
It was better for her ego.

The wings took up a lot of space
even when they were folded together and tucked down.
She get through doorways with a little more maneuvering.
But for the most part, tight spaces were out.

The wings were tougher than real butterfly wings
and healed better.
But they could still get ripped if they caught on something.
Torn wings hurt.

The wings also moved. A lot.
Some of the movements were small.
Just tiny little twitches that no one else seemed to notice.
Some of the movements were big.
Particularly if someone or something startled her.

She thought about asking one of the biology students
about the reasons why.
They knew more about butterflies than she did.
But the other victims sometimes flinched
when they saw the wings.
And some of the families had been hostile.
So she stayed away.

Facet was nice.
And he didn't flinch at the wings.
So Tsubasa did her best
not to flinch at his eyes.
Fair was fair.

Sitting had its own share of problems.
Particularly with Western furniture.
So far they had discovered two options.
Seiza on a cushion or stools.

It was just two more items on her mental shopping list,
after clothes and before transportation.

Tsubasa was going to have to
replace or alter all of her shirts.
Even the ones that were backless
were still designed to go over one's head.

The gown she was wearing now was fine for the hospital
but not for outside.
Paper-like material and Louisiana weather did not mix.

Priya suggested saris
and offered to bring over some of hers for Tsubasa to try.
Ynez offered to do alterations
that could done with her existing clothing.
It was good to have friends.

Transportation was a different kettle of fish.
She couldn't sit in a seat and buckle up which eliminated most vehicles.
She supposed that she could ride in the back of a pick-up,
but the police usually frowned on that.
And she'd be dependent on someone else
for a ride all the time. No thank you.

Maybe she could fly.
Butterflies might not be speediest of fliers
but some of them went on pretty long journeys.
If she could fly, she'd just need to practice
and give herself enough travel time.
'It'd be pretty cool to be able to fly everywhere,' Tsubasa thought.

But this WAS Louisiana.
Sometimes it rained. Sometimes it rained a lot.
Which was at least one good reason for having a Plan B
for getting around.

Tsubasa focused on the practical things, the physical things,
because those were easier. Much easier than
the tangled mess of feelings, hopes, and fears about
what had happened and what might happen in the future.
She's start unwinding that tangle another day.
A day when her calm didn't feel as delicate as cotton candy.

She still had moments where
she forgot the wings were there.
Then they would move,
or catch on something,
or cause her fall down,
and then she'd remember.

It made the learning process frustrating.
But as the proverb says,
fall down seven times, get up eight.

NOTES:
Seiza is the Japanese term for one of the traditional formal ways of sitting.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seiza)

EDIT: corrected typo.
EDIT: And another one.