Today I will paint my nails red for you.
Because they’re cracked, dirty and blue
with bruises which ache and so for their sake,
I will paint them red.
I like to paint them green,
it reminds me of an idyllic scene
where leaves dance in the sun’s sheen,
and I think of all that could be,
The land and the sea,
Together in verdant unity,
Somewhere I’d like to be.
But I need something to cover the blue,
and I just don’t think green will do.
So today I will paint my nails red for you.
In the late 90s I tried a red shade,
I was 10 and drinking lemonade,
Chatting pets and boys with friends,
While we chewed our straw’s ends
Lila produced a pot of Rimmel,
Bright, glowing red shone from the glass,
And before much time had passed,
We had it on our toes,
And Amy somehow got it on her nose
At first it looked so good,
As I pranced around with it on my foot,
But then it started to look like blood,
A stain on my toe shell,
So I began to scream and yell,
‘Get it off, Get it off’
But today I will paint my nails red for you.
Because this colour is different,
It’s tranquil and light,
And next to my skin, it feels just right,
And if it ends up being not quite what it seemed,
With promised shine and transformative gleam,
I’m used to that and
It’ll still be,
a colour that’s right. That’s right for me.
So today I will paint my nails red for you.
Because they’re cracked, dirty and blue,
with bruises which ache and so for their sake,
I will paint them red.
Today I will paint my nails red for you.
