It hurts worst
in the first few hours,
when the purple
leaps up in the moon
of the nail,
and it pulses, throbs,
how the thumb’s pulp
strains against
the skin’s chapel,
and the wrinkles
erase themselves
as the knuckle swells.
Tell yourself
at least it was
only your thumb.
Tell yourself
it was no one’s fault.
Tell yourself
it is not at all
like the heart.
It will heal.
The hurt
will be gone.