Mademoiselle, I am so flattered
That you would offer
To lift the curse
And make me a man again
But I must tell you
I am, how you say, very contented
As what I am
A beautiful
Hand-crafted
Pair of scissors
Just think of all
I can do
Cut
Snip
Trim
I am so useful
As I am now
What use will I have
As a man?
Because I can work?
Because I can labor?
Because I can toil?
Who should want
To toil and labor
When one can
Be an apprentice
To a dressmaker
Or be used to cut up
Little shapes
Out of paper
Swifty sever the strings
That hold a package closed
Or open a bag
Of frozen peas
Look at me!
As a man I was small
Not in height
But in presence
As a pair of scissors
I am long
Golden
With a gleaming edge
And I am never alone
Because there is no such thing
As a scissor
Only scissors
The very nature of my being
Means that I can never
Think of myself
As solitary
Look at my handles
Two perfect circles
By which to grab
Unless you hand me
To someone
In which case
You grab the duller part
Of my blades
With a firm grip
I am something
That can be
Handled
There is no handling
A man, not really
His pride will not
Allow for such a thing
I have no pride now
What am I
But a fine member
Of a junk drawer
Tucked away, neatly
In the cavernous space
Of the palace
Perhaps there are
Other pairs
Of other scissors
That I have not met yet
There is so much
For me to find
And I must do so
With the help of others
Once I am given back
Legs and arms
I will believe
That I can do everything
For myself
Why would I want to live
In such a way?
I have been independent
And I have been of service
To others
And I must tell you
I prefer the latter
So thank you
For your offer
To make me
One of the hundred
Butlers that used to butle around
This place
Day in and day out
But I think
I must
Refuse
Men, you know
They are a dime a dozen
But a good pair of scissors?
Now that
Are hard
To find
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