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"I gave birth to you so I can take you out of this world."

So do it then, I'll even hand you the knife you need to send me to an early grave.

Since you always know best don't you?

But let's be real you just don't have the guts to do it.

Maybe I should do it myself.

-Kore
A vent since today is so ****.
If I had a coffee shop,
I'd call it The Lullaby.
There'd be sleepy yellow light,
And beer mugs full of
Iced tea.

I'd know all of the town
Gossip,
And hug the people who
Need it.
I'd have sandwiches
For rainy days,
And warm pastries
For snowy days,
And Potato salad
For hot days.

If I had a coffee shop,
Old men would sit at the bar,
Sipping their simple coffees,
And whining about the weather,
And the problems
With their cars.
If I had a coffee shop,
Old women would tell me
My cakes are made
The way their mothers used to
Make them,
And I'd serve them tea
In thriftstore
Missmatch teacups.

I'd fill my little Lullaby,
With work by unknown artists,
And strange trinkets I took
A fancy to,
And have books
About old actors,
And books meant to be
Read in a crowd
So you can imagine
The lives around you.

If I owned a coffee shop,
I'd play songs from musicals,
And garnish things
With mint leaves
And strawberries.
I'd have madalines
And my mother's coffee cake,
And her soup too.

If I had a coffee shop,
Maybe I could meet you.
 Apr 2021 Emma Pratt
b e mccomb
the day starts with shirley
who comes in just after eight
for her 20oz chai
"what kind of milk?"
"doesn't matter"
punches her own coffee card
tells me about her puppy
kayla is next her hair and
makeup always perfect
about as nice a landlady as
one can have in a town like this

from there it's a constant
stream of people
who i watch out for and
who don't know i'm doing it

janice lives alone and thinks
people are stealing her money
doesn't understand
the tests her doctors want
she can't remember
what she always orders
it's a turkey club sandwich no bacon
on toasted oatmeal regular chips no pickle
a to go box for the leftovers
and some kind of chocolate treat in a bag
because she only eats when
she comes in here

two weeks ago
i accidentally switched
barb's 12oz soy chai
with someone else's
12oz whole milk chai
it wasn't enough dairy
to give her a problem
in fact she didn't seem
to remember it
but i made her another for free

nic stopped for his afternoon coffee
didn't laugh at anything just stared
blankly into space and said he
thought he was getting sick
had too many things to finish
the day before when i was waving
to him from the parking lot
so i took my dog to the
back door of his office and
we barked until he came out
patted us both on the head
and said he felt better

we're all creatures of habit
like mckenna who arrives
like clockwork
between one thirty and two
tuesday through saturday
leans on my bake case while
i count my tips and add random
ingredients to different drinks
in a reckless attempt
to break up the monotony
and he drinks them all
like clockwork
no matter how bad they are

rita doesn't smile since she broke her hip
in fact i haven't seen her since
walt got sick and he and joan
moved upstate to be closer to their son
i worry about something happening to ray
who will take care of rita?
whose laugh used to echo off the walls
and fill the place up
pat's smoking again and it turns out
he has congenital heart failure
gail had a fall, a stroke and
suddenly died

i make the same dumb jokes
only a few people smile at
i sing to myself
and people point it out

karen sits in her motorized wheelchair
ice and snow dripping from the wheels
onto the scratched, muddy floor
and tells me i'm pretty and funny
and have a beautiful voice and
i look at karen, her head tilted to
the side and spit hanging from her
buck teeth and wonder why such a
wonderful funny girl with a heart of gold
had to have the body she's stuck in

why life is ****
and why i'm trying
i swear i'm trying
fighting
for something
i don't know what

why we fight
why we try
to make the world
a better place
when nothing can really change
any of these dismal facts
copyright 4/6/18 b. e. mccomb
 Mar 2021 Emma Pratt
SophiaAtlas
It hurts the most
When the person
That made you feel wanted yesterday
Made you feel so unwanted today.
 Feb 2021 Emma Pratt
Kim
We're almost touching.
we were walking side by side,
you're talking about cabs in your hometown.
I can feel the gravity of your hand, calling my fingers
whispering "it's alright."

We're touching but not quite.
you held my shoulder to protect me from the passing cars.
and for the first time in a long while, I felt so fragile.
In this world where I find it hard even to breathe,
you believed me.

I almost said it.
All I need is one ounce of strength to tell you every single thing that I have ever felt about you.

I want to find home in your collarbones.
Would you be kind enough to let a stranger in?
I want to seep in your being because I'm cold.
The world is harsh and my cracks are aching.

Almost.
Please don't ever become a stranger,
whose laugh I can recognize anywhere.
 Feb 2021 Emma Pratt
Bee
hell is a place where
you constantly love those that
do not love you back.
 Feb 2021 Emma Pratt
Vale Luna
(read forward, then backward, line by line)

I ran.
Not knowing what else to do
There was so much blood on my hands
It was mine
The kitchen knife
Caught in my chest
Guilt
Consumed by
Fear
I was heightened by
Adrenaline
But running on
Wasn’t enough
While trying to stay calm,
Losing control
It was me that would end up
Dead. Because
He was
In front of me
The whole time
It was too late
Trapped
I found myself
Locked in chains
My fate was
Death.
Forward: from the victims perspective.
Backward: from the murderers perspective.

This TOOK ME FOREVER TO WRITE
 Feb 2021 Emma Pratt
Paul Hobson
Cry
 Feb 2021 Emma Pratt
Paul Hobson
Cry
Id cry too,
Cry for me,
Cry for you,
Cry every time you see the color blue.
Cry alone in bed,
Cry each night after the prayers that are said.
Fill a bucket full of tears,
Those aren’t yours anymore,
Give them here.
 Feb 2021 Emma Pratt
32x
i think that the most damaged people in the world
are the kindest
and the softest

because they know
that scabs can be picked
and you can bleed
I'm sorry for being a bad daughter
I'm sorry for being a bad friend
I'm sorry for being a bad sister
I'm sorry for being a bad student
I'm sorry for being not strong enough
I'm sorry for failing
I'm sorry for giving up
I'm sorry for not being able to tell you
I'm sorry for telling you like this
I'm sorry for not seeing another solutions
I'm sorry for not believing you that you love me
I'm sorry for my mind, don't letting me sleep for weeks
I'm sorry for not being there, when you need it
I'm sorry for complaining
I'm sorry for being weak
I'm sorry for being not worth it
I'm sorry for being so stupid
I'm sorry for thinking I could do it
I'm sorry for even trying
I'm sorry for being to sad
I'm sorry for being to happy
I'm sorry for lying
I'm sorry for the nights you wasted to me
I'm sorry for blaming you
I'm sorry for not being able to clean up in my head
I'm sorry for saying I love you
I'm sorry for everything
I'm sorry for my mind
I'm sorry for the things I said
I'm sorry for wasting your time
I'm sorry for being late
I'm sorry for wasting Money
I'm sorry for seeking attention
I'm sorry for begging
I'm sorry for being a mess
I'm sorry for my thoughts
I'm sorry for being lazy
I'm sorry for being loud
In sorry for loving
I'm sorry for hating
I'm sorry for being annoying
I'm sorry for being to jealous
I'm sorry for comparing
I'm sorry for stop trying
I'm sorry for existing
I'm sorry for breathing
I'm sorry for living
I'm sorry
I'm so sorry
#tired-of-this-life.  
#don't-wanna-Love-anymore
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