Have I earned my living?
Time traded for dollars to keep.
As youthful as my body is,
The work will gnaw at me, eventually.

We banked all these hours,
Locked them in a cell,
How many years has it been now?
My mind is going, I can tell.

The monster dwells in my rib cage,
Claws at ribs 11 and 12,
With a tight grip on my heart,
He tries to keep me for himself,

Push and pull until it breaks,
Until the tendons stretch and thin,
It won’t take much this time,
The scar tissue is bruised within.

This tomb is familiar to me,
A lifetime ago it meant a lot, you see.
Time weathered the edges,
The illegible text clings to the ledges,
Your name barely rings a bell,
The tide washed away your memory in the swell,
Thinking of you… wherever you are,
A distant dream that smells sweet from a far.

This feeling is familiar,
It crept its way onto my skin,
Dug a hole into my chest,
Made a home within my bones.
In the hollowness,
It found a sanctuary.
That heavy ache within,
Feels lighter every day,
I’ve been bitten by that pesky bug,
Who was hiding in the dark,
Waiting till my armor broke,
To root itself within.

Wine drunk in the late fall,
The clacking of glasses,
The buzz of the room.
The coolness in the air bites,
Leaves are drained of colour,
Thank-ful for Octobers,
For the warmth it brings,
Despite the drop in temperature.
My lungs fill with golden light.

The way the corners of your lips would turn up,
As I mumbled soft words to myself.

We playfully mocked one another,
Light jabs to lighten the mood.

The smell of spices filled the house,
As we cooked Sundays away together.

You showed me love, through cooking,
A love language we both shared.

Will my heart be safe with you?
It's been broken many times before.

You never told me what you meant,
I’m sorry all my love for you went unspent.

Our intertwining minds worked too hard,
Best to give them both a rest.

We got out before the collapse,
Before the foundation crumbled at our feet.

In my dreams, I’ll meet you at the usual spot,
We'll talk for hours under the trees.

I could stare at your ocean eyes for a while,
Drown myself in the neverending stream.

Her eyes were fiery
While her lips peeled away
Her sun was setting
But her colors never fade
When she bites she is bitter
But when she smiles she is sweet
Like a nectarine emblem
She’s the fruit of life’s tree.