What the skeleton said

Poem by Rosemary Mathew

by Rosemary Mathew 1st March 2024

When alive I was male. My hips have
Told you this. A warrior, a soldier.
You need only see my shin, dented,
Axe-marked, the whole leg mis-shapen
While still in my teens.

Fighting was harsh, and weapons primitive.
My hands, when they held blood, damaged by war,
My skin burned, briefly, in fire; the flesh
Scarred in accident. No modern skills
However will disclose that.