They were identical twins, <br />Laura and Amy, <br />shared a humidicrib <br />and clung <br />to one another <br />with tiny pink hands <br />two halves of one <br /> <br />They both loved to run <br />running was freedom <br />faster than everyone <br />they ran and swam <br />hour after hour <br />lap after lap <br />they were fantastic <br /> <br />'You'll have to eat' <br />their mother said <br />'If you're going to run <br />and swim so fast. <br />You can't do it on nothing! ' <br /> <br />But they could <br />and they did <br />and pretty soon <br />at age fourteen <br />they were diagnosed <br />with anorexia <br /> <br />'Let's get down to <br />twenty-five kilos? ' <br /> <br />I saw their picture in the paper <br />the other day <br />they were thirty-six <br />and skin and bone <br />they looked so old <br />like victims from Belsen <br />- only their hair was dyed <br />and cut in yellow spikes. <br /> <br />They live on the pension <br />they have osteoporosis <br />they don't run any more <br /> <br />Why don't you get better? <br />'Get Better? What is better? <br />We love our anorexia <br />It's the only thing <br />we've got left <br />to make people <br />care about us.'<br /><br />Alison Cassidy<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-two-of-us/
