Sweetly, slowly
Held gently within the grasp of life;
Plucked swiftly, quickly
as a crisp fall leaf torn from a wind-battered tree
and left to fall sweetly and slowly
Silently, sorrowfully
does the leaf spread its veins
and crumble as it is trampled
and shiver as summers end
greets winter with silent and sorrowful tears
that lay drying as ice on the cheeks of feverish children
Carefully, cautiously
do we approach the warmth once more
the leaves of yesterdays summers forgotten
and the memory of chaste winter kisses
left to flee from blushing lips
as we grow carefully and cautiously to
chase evening flowers
and put from our minds all thoughts
of orange and faded leaves

Terrors haunt my every sleeping hour
dreams of screaming soundlessly;
heartbeat quickening
hands unseen rendering me motionless
limbs attached but immobile and awkward
eyes blurry, unfocused
but still, I see the shadow in the corners of my vision
creeping closer with every heavy-lidded blink
I hear another set of breaths
and then I am staring into the eyes of something less than alive
but more than dead
because the dead do not whisper my name so sensually in my ear
and the dead do not caress my face
and smile horrific smiles down at me as I shriek
and no one hears

What are we supposed to do
with all of the words building in the gears of our brains and at the tips of our tongues
begging to be said but too deeply personal to ever
touch the light?
Where do we expel all of the terrible and beautiful things inside of us before they
destroy us?