Rubbing salt

Sometimes we hide our hurt
to keep things simple
our pain unmistakably ours
salted away
even caressed
to keep it quiet

invariably these
little bundles
of hurt
are weightless
never going
into the balance pan
or tipping the scales
of judgement

but the point
of zero G
is not that
our pains are so
incredibly light
but that they are not
integrated like atoms
in molecules
held together
by valences
charges
of affinity
that make compounds dance
and all the stress
and excess baggage
fall away
while they themselves precipitate
and stabilize

so chlorine gas
and sodium
that ignites and burns
at the least exposure
to oxygen
come together
to make table salt

but when such chemistry is
not in play
the heaviness
of all things
solitary
press our pains
into capsules

perhaps that
we might stop them
from contaminating
each other
intensifying their effect
but most likely
to let us self-medicate

apparently men do this
compartmentalize
I mean
so said Carol Shields
in Larry's Party
but I think
women do it too
only
the isotopes are
more unstable
and the risks
of contamination
greater

and more bewildering
to them and to you.