The Jarjacha, according to Peruvian myth, is a human who has been cursed because they have committed incest.
I’m not a human anymore.
I don’t know when the change occurred
Something, that happened long before
These urges deep within me stirred
Perhaps. Perhaps I always had
The monster deep inside my soul
And I was destined to be bad
It’s not my fault, it’s just my role.
But in the end, I know I chose
To break the worst taboo. To sin,
And God will always punish those
Who couple with their closest kin.
You’d never know, to look at me
By day, I look like anyone
At night it is my fate to be
As hideous as what I’ve done
I walk on tender, fleshy feet
Stay out of sight, avoid the glares.
I hunt for innocents to eat
And cleanse my soul, consuming theirs.
There is a way to hold me back:
Hold up a mirror, let me see
Myself, and then I won’t attack.
Appalled by what I am, I’ll flee.
Tom Juniper Poetry 