Please Teach Me Melanie Marie -

Pacifier in my pocket A match in my hand If you can’t be my wonderland Then I’ll be my own Neverland

I painted my nails with the juice of a blackberry While the grown-ups screamed sorry on a broken TV My teacher’s a doll with her mouth sewn tight She said, “Color inside the lines, dear, or you’ll lose your light” please teach me melanie marie

— Crybaby, age 8 forever

But I like the drip I like the mess The ugly truth in a pretty dress Mommy’s perfume and a rusted key The nursery rhyme that bit me Pacifier in my pocket A match in my

I bit the apple — it tasted like plastic The prince turned out to be mildly sarcastic So I built a castle out of carousel horses And changed all the rules mid-lesson, of course-es “Color inside the lines