photos i forgot i’d taken
betray themselves
in the sent folder
of my middle school yahoo email.
pages & pages of threads
that eat & repeat & regurgitate
each other, chains
with missing & broken links,
error codes
leading nowhere.
text messages stored
without their assorted replies,
inboxes set to auto-delete
when they reach a certain capacity.
countless chat bubbles
on facebook messenger,
private albums
of requested selfies &
full-body mirror shots
in thin dresses
i have no memory of wearing.
i was younger than i remember
at thirteen – flat iron curls
sprayed to frame the traces
of baby fat
still lining my cheeks.
the slimy insides
of my brain’s computer
refuse to reveal themselves,
no matter how fully
i scour its walls,
how devoutly i grovel.
the slideshow plays
on an endless loop.
the gods of bylaws &
incorporation have no regard
for my offering.