on reforming a terrorist
she died as a homegrown terrorist
having succumbed
to the voices
inside her complicated mind
it wasn’t the first or last time
she’d have died
so violently
this time by way of chemicals
mixed precisely so
how she wished she had
a dying wish
something she’d learned about
throughout the centuries
but for some reason until now
never had a chance to express
january two thousand twenty-two
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved