Just as
close as
your heartbeat
as
the thoughts
inside
your head
I'm watching
and
I'm listening
to you breathe
and
I'll discover
every weakness -
shake all
your demons'
hands -
then
I'll
let you
know me
and
trust me
with your soul -
the moment
when that
happens
I'll  turn
you on
yourself

by Pat Raia

I can
see it -
you've been
beaten
with a stick
and
kicked
in the belly
and
starved
of food
for days
you've been
stranded
in the cold
and
blistered
in the heat
and
finally
left
for dead -
So
have I
Let's go
home

I wanted roots
so I invented them
from other people's stories
I wanted wings
so I made them
from paper scraps and string
I conjugated a million verbs
to tell my own life story
and I witnessed things that frighten you
especially when you dream
Now you want to be me
and it makes me laugh
I don't think you've saved enough
broken string
for that

I
have been
the angel
of death
and a warrior
for life
I
have stood
on the edge
of nightfall
and kept
my balance
there
I've
believed in
the dreams
of thousands
who had
no faith
of their own
now
the journey
of my lifetime
has
brought me home
at last