let these words linger
on the lips
soft kisses
left by forgotten lovers
fingertips caressed
across the cheek
now claws
opening wounds
that will never heal
slivers of blood
that scar my face
and cast shadows
across my smile
let these words linger
let them wither and die
do not speak
utter silence
bubbles on your tongue
spill like syllables
and spit
on your pillow
I bow to you. How your hands take mine and pull me under your heavy embrace. How watery your bosom against my breast, your fingertips against my chest, your smile pressed into the gaze of my distracted eyes.
I bow to you.
For your blood is a bubbling brook of fresh water, your breath like a sea breeze that carries the brine, your heartbeat now the undertow that lulls me to sleep and tears me from bed, scrambling as though I’m drowning, drowning as you take me in and feed me.
I bow to you.
With your body entangled in mine, you are a whirlpool, and I am your spin. You are the current, and I am the sailor stranded in your open waters. You are the waves, and I am the thunder you bring to the shore. I am helpless, I am hopeless, I am hindered, and you carry me in your moist arms, your damp palms against my sagging spine.
Wandering the streets
I stare at my feet
the white stones on the ground
broken all around
I hear our cries echoing
my tears still choking
the breath from my lungs
at our city undone
Through darkness I may wander, may there always be a light
The pain in which I despair, may it always lead me right
Through the sorrow so deep in me, may there always be the fright
The sadness in my soul I keep, may it prove me weaker than my might
Excerpted from I is for It Gets Better
I’ve decided to commit suicide
So please talk me out of it
I don’t want to die
But my life has become but a lie
And I can’t remember when I felt higher than this
I love you and I don’t want you to go
And I know that I’ll miss the world upon the other side
So let me hear your voice and tell me it’ll be alright
And lie down beside me and hold me through the night
Because I know you’d die not to let me go
Tell me that I have the right to live
That my life isn’t worth the cost of death
Tell me that I have talent and skill
And that I have another chance still
And coerce me into suspending my disbelief of your truths
I’ve decided to commit suicide
But please, talk me out of it tonight
Coax me into believing your words
And to a new day lead me towards
And know that I’ll live on, that I will be alright
Excerpted from To the World I’ll Be
Silent Soliloquy 