"I want u to tattoo a house on me"

i'ma veteran you know
gone through many war zones
exploding homes and households held hostages
I've got the battle scars to prove it
i'm imprinting ink upon my thigh to hide them
never again
reopen old wounds
along the white lines that form against
brown skin
it's been a year since last broken
i'm building a house on my leg
representing a series of unfortunate events
held up by sticks over a cliff
my mother is a bird
my father is a bird
and the house is empty of children
we are locked inside our rooms
I need a permanent reminder of the
pain i've gone through
make it a landmark
i've made it pass the land mines to the trenches
safe and hallow warm dirty secrets
I need to fill up with crisp cold water
wash my sins away
remind me in black and grey
3000 miles away from family
an ancient spirit following my footsteps
my roots embracing the core of the earth
unmoving
not going anywhere
and so this tattoo is the only thing
I need to feel
needles digging-deep into flesh
building an imaginary house
made real.