I feel so conflicted
And yet so in love
But am I just afflicted
When push comes to shove
I can't say it out loud
I can't speak what I mean
Maybe I'm too proud
To ever come clean
I don't want to hurt
Either myself or you
You wouldn't be the first
That I've shown my colors to
But will you be the last
And perhaps be the one
To acknowledge my past
And show me how it's done
Can I forgive myself
For the hurt I will cause
Or will I keep running
While you try to cut your loss

Quarantine
Masks and evasive glances
Huddled groups
And
Spaced out picnics
Long lines for household needs
Hurricanes
Then rainbows
Promises of hugs
Smiles through technology
And waves across the hall

~

Lazy days and lunch in bed
Blankets on the couch and
Romantic comedies
Popcorn and dark chocolate
Date nights in, and
Homemade steak
Drive-through milkshakes
Walks down empty city streets
Holding hands with
My love

~

It was his turn to light the fires that night.

They ranged around the base of the blank wall of stone etched with the small carvings, the memories of those who had come back.

So many had not.

He could still remember when their little corner of the world had been discovered by the Empire, the little corner where it was ordinary to be extraordinary, where everyone had a gift. They had been useful, of course.
Too useful. And even when the old autocrat had fallen and they were finally free, too few of them had come back. Far too few.

Oft there come these pitch black nights
Untouched by heaven’s perfect lights
And in those nights we fail to see
Lost in darkness, but alone by no means

For lights soon prick the canvas, black
And with their beams loneliness lack
But carry with them friends, or love
They come with Truth the dark to prove

So lose not hope in blackest dark night
But pray until you see the light
For clarity accompanies luminescence
And faith shines forth in clarity’s presence

A dragon trapped me in the walls
Of fortress worlds away
My hope: one day a knight would come,
Bring me from dark to day

I took a candle, every night
And with a falt’ring tread
I set its tiny flame upon
The sill close by my bed

One day, I said, someone will see
My silent, wretched cry
My plea to search within my walls
To grab my hand and fly

But unlike that which Psyche saw
My candle showed no face
Just blackness, not a star above,
A plane of empty space

Growing pains are
Just that
A time for growth
Stretched out by nearly
Abysmal
Pain
But I think too often
I
Am so caught up in the pain
Of it all
That I forget to see the light inside
Of growth
Or to appreciate the changes
In me
So help me to remember
That waiting isn’t empty moments
That getting to know
Someone
Doesn’t mean that I must
Fall in love
Remind me of the grounding truth
That friendships are not
Obligations
For something
More

We don’t fit in
We sorta stand out
Standing around in our
Converse or
Bow ties
Looking like sore thumbs
But if you take a moment to talk to us
You’ll find that
There’s gold lining on
Our hearts
And though we
Don’t
Look like the cool kids
We’re cool
To
Us
‘Cause we know how to be
Kind
We know how to
Listen
To sum us up
We love
Freely and fully
We love
Unconditionally
So try not to be too cool
To say hello
Take a moment to

She was walking alone in the dark, her light blue stilettos clicking insistently on the sidewalk. Her floral cocktail dress was damp from the foggy night air, and she pulled her sleek white coat more tightly across her chest. She shuddered and looked around, shrinking away from the shadowy buildings before taking off on a run to the door of her apartment building. She had been holding in her tears for hours now, and once she shut the door behind her and slipped her coat off she let the river run.

I dozed off a little once it was morning, and woke up to stewardesses opening window covers and serving breakfast.
The captain’s voice came on, in a prim, polite British accent.
“Good morning, passengers, we hope you had a restful night. We’ve just passed over the Isle of Mann, and will be beginning our descent into London shortly.”
Isle of Mann…London…Whoa. I peered groggily out the window. The sun was just getting high enough to lose its morning softness, and I squinted against its growing glare, trying to see down through the patchy clouds.

I see a void over which colors loom

Waiting to embrace in the place of gray

Our children are lost inside of this gloom

While parents are kneeling to weep and pray



We hail them on with exuberant cheer

And muster courage, their hearts to carry

While standing by, they see their end is near

And they only live in hopes to bury



Once they’re gone we suddenly wonder why

With such deep dread they began every day

And looked up never into the bright sky

Wishing only to die and fall away