my hands smell like gasoline
my heart is on fire
the friction of you pulling my heart strings ignited a flame
i can't take this heat
who's to douse my love in a torrential rain

canoe sunset rides on spider lake.
1am star sneakouts to lay on the pontoon and talk.
running to walmart in the rain.
"welcome to caaaammmppppp"
first night frybread.
take me home country roads three guitar jam sesh
letters back and forth.
worship at the ridge. bless.
blair lake sunsets.
12 hour naps in sick room.
mighty mighty.
bonkers.
ducking underwater to escape the horse flies.
kaelynn flipping out of the kayak in baggy jean shorts.
seeing sarah after four years.
running to AO with Dustin and Ruby.
mirror selfies with rachel.
mario kart everything.
talking with meredith in the hearth room.
so many games of quarters.
joy's snickety snacks
towel over the head with sophie and joy
cassie being the speaker my first time counseling.
laurel's blue water song
laying, crying, and talking with katie the last night
AMEN across the lake
cabin adventures to star gaze on pontoon.
running to matthew and rachel with tear filled eyes after talking with amber
aidan's long 10pm kind thoughtful and affirming texts

with astounding longevity
my heart was so heavy
drowned with waves of depressing... worldly... insolutions...
a burden of problems unsolved.
give me one, give me two.
life is a theater
these "humans" think it's neater
to glorify a people pleasing persona upon their pedestal stage.
how can my own life in my chest not be heavy with red on the left and white on the right...
satan bleeds his blood.
white gives her life.
which shoulder weighs more...?
a category of "a" and "b," "one" or "two," "x" and "y."
which media story will fit in line.
well fine, let's get real.
the world is ******.
wait **** you need to duck..
here comes a flock of incompetent ridiculing opinions.
they'll hit you in the head,
make you feel close to dead.
have you got it?
have i picked a lock to get you to understand?
that maybe my chest
                         aches
                         at
                         night
cause the longevity of THIS life,
well,
my heart can't take it.

the beginning of the end.
the end of the beginning.
points in time.
time in points.
who are we...?
are we who...             we think we are?

my face falls on the outside
as i crumble inside
there's a weight assisting gravity
pushing down on my shoulders
         creating
a
    spiral

she says she's alright
but turn down the lights
it's all in her head now

i don't want to go through with this,
but it seems like we're doing this.
you're forbidden, like it's hidden...
but i want it.
you ask me how do you feel,
i say "is this real?"
i pinch myself to see.
you know i've wanted this forever..
you and i, do or die.
i've got the motherf**ckin bandit by my side.

fingers flow along the sea of white and black.
mind consumed with memorized melodies.
it's like coming up for air.

a numb ache in the bone,
feels like you're alone.
with a head full of lies,
im saying goodbye.

today i wake up sick.
today i wake up anxious.
today i wake up scared.
today i wake up uncontented.
today i wake up conflicted.
today i wake up feeling isolated .
today i wake up.

today will be okay.
today i will smile.
today will hold promise.
today i will breathe.

today.

dear anna,

the world changes
the ground shifts
we still make plans
we still find gifts
gmorning
(lin manuel miranda)

love, anna

the days where your heart soars
your soul graces the shores
as the river of life flows
and the garden of hope grows.

imagine.

words

            twisting

inside.

            thoughts

spinn­ing,

           spiraling.

i feel like a magnet.
attracting every possible situation i don't want to be in.
for once,
can't i repel?

everything's a lot.
not sure i wanna give it a shot.
the pull is strong... i know it's wrong.
these rhymes...? they're not mine.
ha, just the other me inside...
i tried and i tried,
but it's almost like i died.
cause ya know...
life is ****, give me my mit
to catch this ball
thrown over my head
on a day to day basis...
i try to play the game.
oh wait.. not the mit.
let me grab my mask.
i'm the catcher with the mask on my face to protect the embrace of the feelings ball.
my emotions thrown at 90.
then they come in for the slide
and my tears well... glide.

the small act
of you leaving
for the night
crushed me in flight
my solo sleep
causes tears to creep

it's night,
i should write,
filling pages upon pages with words en route from my brain

it's night
i can't write
filling white pages with white words

a treaty with myself
to never lose sight
of me.

we facetimed
and it was hilarious
lip reading and asl
to communicate
cause you had poor connection.

alive...
but living?

bending over in agony,
as silent tears fall and flow.
time to find a way to go...

no, i must learn to grow.

today was a sideways thumb.
not all the way down but not deserving of up.
today was a rollercoaster,
of highs and lows, unders and overs.
today was walking in the sunshine,
and recoiling when the voice was raised at you.
today was cooking and rain,
sidewalk talks but later feeling blocked.

i gauge today with a sideways thumb.

a simple melody,
flitting around and through.
crescendoing over the highest mountain tops,
it never stops,
until making its way to you.

what is the great perhaps?
to escape the labyrinth that is life,
to decide on a final word?
no.
my great perhaps must be to escape the labyrinth...

but come out the other side.

i care about you too.

like a tattered and ratty rag,
i've been worn down day by day.
by constant use and abuse,
i get thrown to the side
with the rest of my kind.
the cupboard in the back, in fact,
is where we hide.
kept in the corner
and given cold shoulder
to think back on the days
when we were given praise
instead of these cries
and end all lies.

i feel inadequate.
am i not enough to be here?
am i helping?
i thought i was the positive influence,
but i feel like i am taking steps backwards,
and putting on a front facing facade is tiring,
for the girl i watch.

this morning feels like a tsunami.
incredible waves of
tired.
sadness.
anxiety.
i think i might fall under...

here one moment.
gone the next.
i didn't even see,
how he took it from me.

how did i not notice?

how dare i...

dear anna,

opening up the bible felt so refreshing didn't it?
it seemed to immediately restore some faith and provide comfort.
notice how everything you read was what you needed to hear...
i'm so proud of you.

love, anna

in bed before two
only three minutes before
four words, here, it means more.

five words to change today,

"today is going to be"

six words to turn it over,

"a good day and here's why"

seven words to complete the phrase,

"today atleast you're you and that's enough."

life is a grind,
not against him,
but intertwined,
with my mind.

it's 11:19 and i don't feel okay
it's 11:19 and nothing seems right
it's 11:20 and i can't get comfortable
it's 11:20 and i need someone by my side

it's 11:21 and my world hurts at night

i heard it
on my way upstairs
your mocking you thought i didn't hear
now i sit with tears

if you knew me, music is everything, you'd see.
an innate instinct that spins me in circles from one instrument to the next.
i have an ocean of notes to dive into headfirst. to create myself while swimming in this world of unoriginality.

if you knew me, you'd see,
the world gets into my head and there i go off the edge.
my mind at the mercy of what should be my least worry.
the people yell. the people scream. it's my soul that takes a harsh beating.
mind sinks. limbs tremble. who would catch my fall?

i know who.
my fall is caught by the resonance of rhythm. by the peaceable pitch. by the sophisticated sound. by a resounding chord that strikes meaning. my fingers flow along the sea of white and black keys. my mind consumed with memorized melodies. when the weight of the world is too much to carry, it's like coming up for air.

i'm the queen who's castle has fallen to the sea
i'm the queen who holds her crown when her kingdom is in flames

when all she needs, and all she wants, when all she finds
when all she is, and ever was is compromised

don't build your walls up too high

i see gold attire
of endless beauty
shining over the mountains
surrounding the stars
giving worth to me and you
doesn't everything seem new?

it is both a blessing and a curse
to feel everything so deeply...

to swim through the lowest of lows,

to fly upon the highest of highs.

drowning to depths,

and soaring to heights

of emotion and feeling,

that can only be experienced by leaving solid ground.

up here, it's calm.
up here, i feel larger than life.
up here, everything will be just fine.
up here, i feel real.
up here, gives perspective.
up here, i experience the impossible.
up here, life is minuscule.
up here, the horizon is endless.

when i fly, when i soar,

over, around, and through the clouds.

life is a beautiful symphony,
but mine is lacking in a steady rhythm.
a flowing melody ceases to exist,
creating nothing but noise,
because the musical components can't seem to coincide here.

wasn't my fault
~
but somehow i'm the one who get's in trouble

in this moment i need a hug.
in this moment i want to see the stars.
in this moment i can feel tears.
in this moment i feel oddly relaxed.
in this moment i don't know what i'm feeling.
in this moment...

dear anna,

the world sleeps,
while you're still awake.
off to bed they go.
now it's just you and your thoughts.
you and your sick feeling.
you and your music.
you and your words.
but you'll be okay.

love, anna

that's the thing about pain,
it demands to be felt.

~okay~

hurt.
drowning.
help.
i want a way out.
the tears force their way forward.
i'm trying my best.
all i want is to be okay.

that's the thing about pain.. it demands to be felt.

goodnight to the ones who feel like the night lasts too long
goodnight to the ones who feel they can't sing their song
goodnight to the ones whos smile was dimmed today
goodnight to the ones who feel led astray
goodnight to the ones who may feel a little blue
goodnight to all you, let me give you a clue..
you will make it through.

the world is too loud.
it seeps in the cracks,
filling your head with unnessecary noise,
prompting fight or flight.
flight builds walls.
up and up they go..
construction could go on forever.
another brick... just one more today...
no.

it gets too high.
it can't stand that tall forever.
it has to come down eventually.
you have to let the world in.
the love.
the blossom of joy only comes from rain pouring down, wearing away your walls.
it's okay to be exposed a bit..

although,
when that wall falls,
the base will still stand.
there's still some protection.
just don't let the wall get built too high..

i want to feel warm,
but this room is dark.
a heavy atmosphere combats my cold.
there's a soothing voice coming into my ears.
a ball on the floor, i curl up,
that's in my head.
a stormy world outside to match me, to catch me.

my coffee is cold.