my mother named it Cruella DeVille
when i could not find the words to
describe the elephants that were
sitting on my chest
crushing my bones and squeezing
the very life out of me
my doctor named it depression and anxiety
but i still prefered Cruella
to describe the days when
i tasted loneliness in the morning
and emptiness at night
Cruella and i became good friends
i warned you about her
i warned you about the
monster living inside of me
that showed its ugly face
from time to time
and like an angry wolf she came in the night
when i wasn’t looking hard enough
for her presence
she made herself comfortable
in the pit of my soul
she consumed me again
you held my hand as Cruella
invaded my thoughts
invaded our love
invaded our home
and i loved you for staying anyways
and i hated you for staying anyways
only because you still saw the
sparkle in me
when i could not even love myself
i let her in
and Cruella DeVille ate us alive
Artwork by Ariela Perez-Wallach
