Challenging Poetry

a complicated relationship

when she thought
I was acting stupid,
being with her was
like diving face first
into a field of cholla,
and then cutting each
barbed spine free.
she left me bleeding
whimpering, ready to
give her up—but she
was precious. and I
am not stupid, often.

line count: 12
prompt: difficulty

Cholla (pronounced choya) are called jumping cactus because their spines can catch on you from yards away because they detach easily. And they're terribly difficult to clean off someone.