Tell Me

Beautiful girl,

When your smile falters
And your eyes avert,
I notice the hesitation
As you work
Your way
Through the words
You really don't mean.

You should know better
'Cause I know you,
And you sure as hell know me;

I won't serenade you with phrases
I know you won't believe,

So I need you to quit your stalling
And tell me what you need.

When In Doubt

10/28/10

She's the fire that burns
The bridges to my sanity,
Leaving me at sea
With my scattering thoughts.

They rush through the winds
Like balloons finding pleasure
In the tears of a child
Who is sad at the loss
Of the things that slip
Through his tiny, little fingers--

Not knowing when to hold on
And when to let go.

Roses Are

6/7/10

I imagine how it would be like
For a boy
To taste my lips as he kisses me
For the first time--

The first time I ever wear lipstick
On a date;

The first time I decide
To kiss a boy first;

The first time I know
It's definitely the last time...

I imagine it to taste like
A white rose dying;
Once white,
Then yellow,
Then withered away,
Left to brittleness,
And bitterness,
And sour-brown-stained,

Left for its beauty to find its sweet way

For that definite last kiss
To beautifully decay.

Like He's Never Felt Her Figure Before

4/25/10
Dedicated to Cameron Mo

We became one shadow,
You and I,
As you kissed me back one last time.

The shadow stretched wide
Beyond our fences,
Beyond the state border,
Way beyond the shorelines
Of the dirtiest beaches on the east coast
And it went stretching and stretching
As if it grew tired
Like you used to stretch gingerly
Before I pulled you to bed,

Before you lay down to sleep
As if I wasn't there

As if I hadn't been waiting for you to come home
From a hard day's work from a job you abhor

From the days long past
That you used to adore
Before the kids came
And before we knew love

Before, when you barely knew me at all
And I took you for someone
Who'd always keep time
And always keep promises,
And abstain from cruel lies

Someone I thought would be by my side
When my body grew weak
And my shadow bent down

Someone to pick me up at those times
And stretch out the woman you would always desire.

Critiquing Her Dry

Dedicated to Cameron Mo

What good

Comes forth

From

Your Midas touch

When you

Can't

Change hearts

To gold?