Woman of iron, from an exploded star,

I embed myself in a crusty earth 

that waits for the sun to rise.

Hammer me into sheets;

stretch me into wires.

I will turn into a plough,

or light up

the world in return.

Freed from the meteorite

with lightning tongue,

I expand without breaking.

You may melt me and mix me,

I emerge even purer,

magnetic and ready to strike—

Iron woman, in her element.

From Frazil (1980 – 2017), a Paperwall Media publication