You are loved.
In the way you were shaped
From the fires of passion,
A building and formation of life.
A triumphant cry when you saw the light
A proud smile when you took your first step,
Uttered your first word, made your first friend.

You are loved.
In the way you draw breath every second
In the way you blink to chase droughts away
And when your face breaks into a grin,
I can feel the sun rise from a dark abyss.

You are loved.
In the way the wind sings your name
In the way that girl you love gives you her secret smiles
And when your feet hit the Earth with every step,
Like every heartbeat, in which the soil and grass have memorised.

You are loved.
Don’t you feel the sun kiss your cheeks?
Embrace the cold, and the warmth, and everything in between
Today, you shake hands with the rain and snow
Then you welcome back the flowers tomorrow

You are loved.
In the way you exist in this moment in time,
Every breath, every smile, every second of your being
A trace and footprint, a mark in this world
A world of many violent and jealous others,
Who scream and tear and drag you down

But can’t you feel the world,
The song and laughter and tears and whispers
Of every molecule in this planet, in this ******* galaxy?
They’re singing, shouting, chanting the same:
You are loved, you are loved
You exist and matter because, yes,
You are loved.

It’s the middle of the night, and I can’t sleep
My dreams are haunted with your painful weeps
I get out of bed; the floor is cold and dry
No sign of tears from your sad blue eyes
I shrug on a coat, though it’s warm outside
Enough to make me think that the flood has dried
But no, the waters are still knee-deep
Reminding me again of your woeful weeps
It follows me everywhere, or so it seems
In reality and in long dark dreams
But then with a jolt, I sat up in bed
Still feeling the remnants of the lingering dread
I dreamt of waking up so many times before
So is this a dream? I’m not very sure
I’m not going to risk it, so I’ll just lie here
Whether it be for a day or a hundred years
And I might be a coward, but I just can’t bear
To think about you in pain and despair
But if this is reality, and you’re okay
Then you’re better off without me anyway

You said you loved my poetry,
That it was beautiful.
That it moved and writhed like a woman’s body
Under the cage of her predator, flesh pressed hotly against cold steel.
Said you loved how the light flooded out of me,
But you never mentioned how it left me empty most of the time.
You said you loved the fine lines of the words I wrote.
I didn’t know you meant the fragility I always wore
Like a permanent cloak.
You said you loved the melodious rhymes,
But didn’t mention the heartbroken prose that I weave
Between the spaces and curves of my womanly bones,
Eventually turned ugly
And withered with time.  

You loved my poetry so much,
When we kissed, you stole the words out of my mouth,
The metaphors and similes and imagery.
Left me empty of diction as you ran away,
The colours chasing after you like trails of blood.
Left me empty of all that light you loved
And caressed with your darkness.
Caged in your darkness.
Left me weightless, meaningless, loveless
As you take it all for yourself.

I am so empty now,
I almost feel nothing for you.

I hope someone someday
Loves your poetry.