Swallow my heart

Swallow my heart
because I have already devoured
sour earth.

Re membering

Re
membering
the sound,
how sound
in your arms

a flicker of light
across my
sky

and you're gone

everytime.

I turn around.

and in this stillness, a flower

it is in this time
forgetting time
and being in places
all too familiar
and not quite
familiar enough,
where we can find
out how to move
and how to be
still and calm,
patient
as
a flower in progress. always.
and you,
the bee or wasp
can come along
relentlessly
with stinger in hand,
completely unsure
of how to proceed.
i'm seeming to feel
as though
wings come
for us all
as surely as
the petals fall.

Create in you

Create in you
tranquil mountains
and the
urge to
whisper praise
to the
delirious eternity

Circus

You held
a
magnifying glass
to me
for a year.
An olive branch
in one hand,
a boxing glove
in another.
It was impossible
to jump
through
the hoops
you laid out
before me.
Even though
I am
skilled
at
circus tricks.

My Dead Husband

Don't wipe away my tears
if they fall.
I am collecting
an urn full
to send
to
my dead husband.

I flew alone

I flew alone.
Then called you
beside me.
What you became.
Those visions
in my head.
You must not
love me-
like you say.

I turn around
and walk away.

you had nothing to lose

you had nothing to lose.
I
on the other hand
had a scarred
and broken heart
that you
pulverized
with your words.
I sat precariously
in your hands.
and when I fell,
it was a long way
down.

Christians

the parents are Christians
but must have neck problems
because
they have not even offered
one cheek.
even.

Protection

And you throw it all away.
So it goes.
Longing for a guarantee,
protection,
from the one you
supposedly
love. Loved.
And I have been
crucified
by you.
And yours.
Judged.
Judged
and deemed
unfit
to trust,
to carry on with,
without
protection.
Two types.

Life Jackets and Legal Documents

I jumped onto the boat

with the broken engine,

holes that needed patching.

Anchorless.

I thought we'd fix things

as we went.

Sailing through life. Together.

The whole time,

you were stockpiling

nuts and bolts,

weaving life jackets

out of my old, discarded dental floss.

And then,

you invited the lawyer

on board.

I didn't agree

to

a

threesome.