Richard Schnap - Tattoo

She was 18 when she had

It woven in her skin

A brilliant scarlet rose

Emerging from her heart




That opened when she fell

Beneath the spell of love

As if it had become

A creature of its own




For when the kisses fled

To feast on fresher flowers

She first began to feel

The thorns upon its stem




And as her days grew dark

The petals seemed to fade

As the spikes began to coil

Like serpents in the night
























Richard Schnap is a poet, songwriter and collagist living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His poems have most recently appeared locally, nationally and overseas in a variety of print and online publications.