ruthless

behind a moat he emotes
he groans and moans
that he feels so all alone

but like an arsonist in a match factory
over a molotov cocktail bar
it was he who set ablaze all his bridges

burned them down to ash in a flash
with efficiency ruthless and rushed
without a thought for what he'd wrought

not a boat to be found
to cross from ground to ground
and no swimmer, he...

consequence unconsidered
better had he dithered

mithridate

despite myself
somehow bought into this
fairy tale patriarchy
years spent longing
faults overlooked
sins forgiven
red flags the colorblind couldn't miss
hoping that this one or that one
would be the prince with mithridate kiss
to heal or solve or wake me
 
finally resolved to fall into the abyss
give up on rescue and find my own bliss
eventually understood
the evil witch's curse
the sow's ear purse
the poison in the apple
the potion on the spinner
only potent with power I provided

the irony, of course, this
once the myth of the damsel in distress
ceases to persist
arrives the hero you can't resist
one who doesn't fix but fights beside
who gives a boost but would never
just carry you up the castle wall
with false promise of happy ever after

so gear up, girl
sharpen your swords for dragon slaying
the fun is about to begin
rules were made for disobeying

declension

picking up speed
as gravity grabs
I'm a rock
rolling down
a declension

world spinning by
wind whistles, I
blurred rush of
adrenaline
and momentum

so hurtled I, forward
onward
downward
smashed upon ground
unforgiving

this time, slow going
but upward
sweet savored
from singular to plural
declension in ascension

mash

the preteen origami
of my heart
folded in on itself
looking for answers
writ in crayon
on crinkled folded wings
manipulated by fingers dancing
as a paper mouth maws the air
and I wonder
who and how and where
it will stop
hope it lands
on my mash
handsome and dashing
and not on heartbreak
careening and crashing

auguries in a childish prop

meaningless
still...
fingers crossed


 

zenith

no one knows
how high it goes
how low the lows neither
zenith - nadir - zenith
and I could not
tell you why there
is a pendulum swinging
from all the birds singing
to alarm bells ringing
but somehow I found
in the soft, sweet sound
of a voice that murmurs
my name
equilibrium, peace
contentment, release
better, yet also the same
not numb as before
nor still raw and aching
not quite yet whole
but no longer breaking
my hurts start to heal
when my hand he holds
and for that I'm so grateful
whatever the future unfolds

abrasive

sandpaper songs sung

in voice made gravelly

by dusty dreams

stirred up controversy 

conjures coughs and sneezes 

percussion made by allergy 

to abrasive memory 

bent harmonica wheezes

out distressed melody 

broken tuneless plucking 

on guitar in minor key

but still the song is lovely 

when you're singing it to me

 

vagary

purely happenstance
in a world full of mischance
and missed connections
so random, so rare
to find moments of perfection
the vagaries of life
so oft against us work
and yet, there's this
while each running from another
somehow we found each other