I am a book
without words
I am a song
without tune
I am a poem
without rhyme
I am a movie
without sound
I am a play
without plot
I am a painting
without colour
I am a sculpture
without stone
I am a woman
without name.

reveal your thoughts
yes, all of them
let them tumble upon the floor
naked and raw
the little bits of you
no one has ever
ever ever
seen before

of all the smiles
ever given to me
and there’s been a few
the best smile
was the one you gave to me
in ‘94
as you ran to me
arms outstretched
love unattached
straight into my arms
with your love for me
written all over
the man I knew
you would eventually be.

All of this
means nothing
the grandeur
the opulence
the pride
if we are both dead
inside

Do you love me
he said
I will try
I said

I feel the fire begin to rise within
the belly of the beast.
I fear that the fire will consume me,
so I dim away its flame.

I go through the world,
a shell of being,
with a whiteness in my eyes,
but no longer seeing.

The flame comes to the surface,
but now I know
it is not my demise.
The fire is what makes me alive.
So I spread my wings,
and rise.