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Ashley Rodden Jul 2020
***** how i loved you
you were always my go to
now every time i take a sip
i just think of his lips
and how much they always adored you
and it burns my heart just like you burn my throat
***** you stole my love
you stole my sleep
you stole my peace
and my rest
Ashley Rodden Nov 2019
I drink *****
and I remember you
I swear it's almost like I can feel you
Drinking what was always your choice of poison
Trying to **** you
Irony is what they call that
*****
your choice, my choice to numb the pain
The pain you always caused the pain you told me I caused you
The burn is so subtle it sneaks up on you
Then before you know it I'm writing poetry at 4 in the morning
Ashley Rodden Sep 2014
We bleed so many colors when we open
Ourselves up wide
Burning blue in the night
And it's hard to make this work
When you're feeling all alone
But, I've been waiting so long
To hold you in my arms
Embrace you forever
Make you my whole world
Water fills these eyes
Still love notes and Valentines
Aren't enough to keep me in your mind
You are the shadow of everything
That I'm not but want to be
You wrote your name inside of my life
And that's where it will stay
We wait until dark
To try and make a mark
One that remains until we're done
Pretending again
Trying not to forget where we are
Or who we're with
Words can cut this tie we've made with
The sharp side of the blade
And our words play out
They drag us down make us
Start to feel like one of them
Just make sure you keep me in your heart
Write my name in your bloods ink
Why did you take my life apart?
Why did you offer me the world?
When the night is full of faces am I still the
only girl?
Because you're still the only one
I turn your world from disaster
You make my heart start beating faster
I ask the questions
You give the answers
Need you now and I can't stand it
I never thought this would be easy
And you let me go when I say I'm leaving
So whisper softly as you try
To tell me how you feel
Just tell me how you feel
I need your voice tonight
Pick me up, put me back together
Stitch me up, make me feel better
No control of my emotions
A ticking time bomb ready for explosion
This life we made is so full of color
And that will not change
But we could change the way we see them
and Your words fade when I explain
Why I hate them
We are the same
And I keep repeating
All that I'm needing
Say you're right here
But you seem so distant
Saying sorry again the same old story
so now tell me how it ends...
Ashley Rodden Jun 2018
Today,
I am anxious and worried.
I am unsettled and “on edge,”
I am terrified because I feel “it” coming.
I am on the cusp of another anxiety attack.
I am about to weather another cold, dark and dismal depressive storm.

I work.
I cook,
I clean,
and while I sometimes forget to do the dishes or dry the laundry —
while I forget to eat —
I have managed to purge my home,
rearrange the closet,
and clean the bathrooms.
It’s like I’m prepping and nesting.
I’m preemptively taking care of my space.
But I know I can’t keep up this pace.
I can’t outrun it and
I cannot stop it and,
the truth is,
that scares me.
I scare me.
Especially now.
Especially during this storm.

I find myself struggling to catch my breath.
I feel numb and lonely.
I stay in bed more,
but sleep less.
I question my faith,
my value,
my worth.
I cry over stupid ****,
like burnt out lightbulbs and unanswered texts.
I cry over important ****,
like love and money.
And I cry because I am crying.
I become reclusive
because this weather makes it easy to isolate myself.
I look for any and all the excuses I can—
the excuses I long for —
the excuses I need to cancel plans and just hide beneath the covers.
I am a chemically and emotionally imbalanced mess.
But what can I do to stop it?
How can I save myself?
I can’t.
I can run
and work
and take my medication,
but I cannot do one **** thing to stop this storm,
nor can I avoid it.
All I can do is hold on and wait for “it” to hit.
All I can do is hold on and try:
try to brace myself and trudge through,
try to keep myself accountable and afloat.
All I can do is breathe and weather yet another storm.
Ashley Rodden Dec 2013
Every hard thing that happens to a soft heart
leaves a callus
Every mean thing a heart hears leaves a ringing echo
Every stone that's thrown leaves shattered pieces
Every beating leaves a bruise
Every hailstorm it endures leaves dents
Every wreck leaves a place in need of a fix
Every tear leaves a place to sew a new stitch
Every lie it's told leaves it with a doubt
Every scream leaves it a little more deaf
Every bite leaves it starving
(for kindness)
Every tear drop makes it sink a little deeper
Every drought leaves an unquenchable thirst
Every time a heart is left starving it turns into a glutton
(for punishment)
Every heart that gets cut is left with a deeper scar than before
Every time a heart is pierced by a dagger
it puts on a little more armor
When a heart is left to bleed it
learns to apply pressure
A heart that gets shot learns to become a gangster
Every stab slices, stings, and burns
Every hit leaves a gaping hole too big to ever fill
Every time a tender heart trusts a lie
It becomes timid and learns to fly
(away)
Whenever a sweet heart gets tainted
it becomes bitter
(sour even)
When a hopeful heart's dreams don't come true
it becomes jaded
When a loving heart witnesses hate
It becomes scared with terror
When a heart gets broken it
learns to heal
But becomes misunderstood
When a heart gets cornered it rolls over
or lashes out in defense
When a heart has been used it
stops being so giving
When a heart becomes wounded
It decides to lay down or stay in the fight
When a heart is shackled and tortured
it cries out in pain
When a heart is abandoned
it becomes self sufficient as it stands in the rain
A lonely heart becomes depressed
and learns to self medicate
When a heart becomes an addict
it learns to deal
When a heart is ravaged it
looses its passion
And when love is  lost within a  heart
It becomes just another body part
(that can't be fixed)

© Ashley Rodden. All rights reserved
Ashley Rodden Mar 2014
Remember how we were
Before this disaster came and tore us apart?
It was the two of us, so in love
And I never thought that would end
I'll never understand how we let it end like this
And I'm willing to feel all this pain
If it gets me to the other side
But for now it just hurts
And I still don't know what it was you wanted
But you were what I needed
Now it's like cutting myself just to feel something I know was not a lie
And it stings a lot
But no matter, if you look you will still find me here
Because you can take it all away and I'll miss
And there will always be a little bit of you in all this
You can say what you think you know
But there's a better side of me to see yet
And I haven't seen any of your best
Because you were too busy taking on dollar signs, anxious
Scared of what you thought I'd need
Now everyone wants a piece of you
And everyone takes a piece of me
So take it like you took
And leave me here to shake like I've never shook
Never getting any better off
As you slip away from me
All I can do is watch
And not say anything at all....

© Ashley Rodden. All rights reserved
Ashley Rodden Nov 2013
Doin' a little drinkin' tonight
Doin' a little thinkin' tonight
Smokin' a cig as I sit here and dig inside my head for thoughts of positivity.
Doin' a little soul searchin' tonight
Doin' a little liein' to myself tonight
Tippin' a bottle up and feelin' it burn all the way down to my core.
Doin' a little hurtin' tonight
Doin' a little cryin' tonight
Enhaling smoke and ingesting nicotine with each drag I take.
Fightin' a little battle tonight
Screamin' inside my head tonight
My body is weary my soul distressed and tore.
Doin' a little forgettin' tonight
Doin' a little rememberin' tonight
With each sip I take it feels like such a contradiction of my feelings.
Feelin' a little lost tonight
Feelin' a little tipsy tonight
With each enhale and exhale the more confused I get.
Feelin' a little uncertain tonight
Feelin' a little bitter tonight
How much more of this can I take?
Holdin' on tonight for dear life
Lettin' go tonight for heaven's sake
Every beat of my heart proves I still must endure this life and these feelings.
Wantin' to talk to you tonight
Wantin' to hold you tight tonight
When I feel the cool night breeze on my cheek I snap out of thoughts and back to reality.
Wantin' to run away tonight
Wantin' to stand still tonight
Every star I count is just a wish that won't come true.
Bein' alone tonight
Bein' sad tonight
So I'm gonna try and drink all these thoughts, feelings, and frustrations away tonight.


Author Notes
this is a typical night for me lately....
© Ashley Rodden. All rights reserved
Ashley Rodden Feb 2014
You are my reason to be
You are the most important thing to me
So why do I treat you so bad sometimes?
Why don't I cheer you up instead of make you cry?
I yell and scream at little things that torment me
I take it out on you instead of just letting it be
I lose my patience and temper too
I don't know how I could ever do that to you
I don't know how to forgive myself for all the pain I've caused
I just can't seem to rid myself of these flaws
You just love me
Why is that so hard for me to see?
How can I let my anger take such a firm hold
It's like in my own life I have no control
I curse and swear, I scream your name
When you are not the one to blame
I hate myself for being so mean
I just want to wake up from this awful dream
I  just want to show you affection and love
But it's from the depths of my own conviction that I can't rise above
I didn't expect things to be this way
I never wanted this for you
I never meant to hurt you like I do
I'm so sorry from the bottom of my heart
I can't believe I'm letting myself fall so apart
I don't know if i can forgive myself this time
What I've done is such a crime
I'm stealing your innocence day by day
And it's not time for that to go away
I feel so ashamed
And only I am to blame
You are mine and I'm suppose to protect you and show you the way
I'm suppose to build you up everyday
And all I do is make you pay
You didn't ask for this
None of it is your fault
I'm not the person I should be
And it's breaking my heart
I need help playing this hand that I've been dealt
I need to let go of all the hurt I've felt
I gotta let go of all this guilt
I gotta wake up and see the light
You are a gift that I don't deserve
But I don't treat you that way, man I got some nerve!
What is wrong with me?!
Alive is something I don't deserve to be
But I am so therefore I must get some help
and learn how to cope with everything that's tearing me apart
I gotta hold the fibers of all my being together for you and me
I gotta let this bitterness go that's dwelling within me
It's time for me to do what I gotta do
It's time for me to step up and do what is best for you!
© Ashley Rodden. All rights reserved
Ashley Rodden Jun 2014
All I'm asking for now
Is that you need nothing more
And that you let nothing come between
Our fragile hearts

We walk together
Knowing where we've been
Knowing that mistakes will be mistaken again
But that's past tense and
It doesn't have to make sense

Because in the still of your hands
Anything can happen
With every kiss
Nothing is impossible

In the comfort of your arms
I find my safe haven
With every beat of my heart
My love speaks in silence and
You're all it's asking for

You do things to me that I can't explain
I see your picture
I smell your skin on the pillow
Lying next to me and
Whenever I'm not with you
I feel myself start to waste away

When you wrap your arms around my waist
I will breathe against your pains
Just exhale and let the past go away
Empty smile with a naked heart
Whoever I was just falls apart

When you're here inside of me
I want you to feel me until you're numb
And all your depth perception is gone
Touch me until the taste of love never leaves your lips
Pull me in, take me out, and I'll make you whole again

I'll lose myself just to find a place
Inside your mind
I'll change myself just to stand alone
In your eyes

Read the wave, ride your fears
In this ocean of love
We've been drowning in
I'll take you deeper until you find
What's hidden in every corner of my mind

Sever the sky, bury the lies
Forget the time
And leave your past behind
These feelings fall like a landslide
When both our dreams collide

Reach into my eyes
Until I feel you in my veins and
I'll put my lips on your scars of hurt and shame
Just give me your darkest nights and all your broken dreams
I will fill the empty space and burn the memories...
I can fix it if you show me where it hurts.
Ashley Rodden May 2014
You held my hand
while you cut me down
We just got started
but it's over now

You're smiling in the spotlight
Dancing with the night
And I've left your mind and heart
I'm tired of buying your time
When I get nothing in return

I should of known better
But I couldn't resist your open arms
I couldn't help the leap when I was tripped so hard
Now I'm left just falling apart

For all I say you always say more
And I can't give you what you've been looking for
You were too good to be true
Your charm always crept closer and
Like a fool I fell pride and all for you

You're the wiser one
Now I stand by the river I cried
And I let myself drown
You swore you'd stand beside me
Now I'm not there beside you
I was yours for the taking
But that was a mistake
I settled for wrong when I ignored the right thing

We had magic but it turned tragic
My life has been infected
Since you left me neglected
I know you're probably sorry
We were always so sweet
But you deceived me
I'll probably regret it
But it's too late now because
you've lost me somehow

"I love you" didn't mean much
My mind is gone now
Deep inside my tears I'll drown
I was a victim and it cut like a knife
Why did we ever have to kiss?
This has turned to a hit and miss

We spent so much time now that's no more
I should of never let you hold me baby
I didn't give into you on purpose though
So tell me how you managed to steal my heart
I want to forget how your kisses tasted on my lips
But there are some things I'm sure to never forget
I tried to keep you amused but I'm tired of being used
And since I'm not your everything
How about I be your nothing
Baby's so tired of hurting

All who love are blind
And our love was on fire
So we danced with desire
But now we've turned to ashes
And the smoke is in our eyes
Ignorance is kind to the heart and mind but
Pain in truth is all you'll ever find

Time can never mend the disappearance of your best friend so
Please don't patronize me
Why hurt each other more with words we want to say
Wish I could just turn down all these voices in my head
But I can't so instead
I'm going to close my eyes
So I don't have to see
the love you don't feel for me

You were always the mysterious one
With your dark eyes and crazy hair
Into fashion but too cool to really care
And you failed to notice how
My heart for you would bleed
I was always on my knees
You're thoughtless words always broke my heart

You were always so brilliant smoking your cigarettes
and talking over coffee
Your philosophies on art and life
You'd teach me of honest things,
Things that were daring, things that were clean.
Things that you thought about life and what it to you did mean.

And I must of mistaken you for somebody else,
Somebody who gave a ****,
Somebody more like myself
And now I'm too tired to care about wrong or right
Because I surrender to you in this fight...
Ashley Rodden Feb 2014
How do I say goodbye to someone as loved as you
Where do I begin to convince myself it's all going to be alright without you
It seems darker now without your presence in this old world
It's like I've lost my guiding light to see because
You were always so content to let me shine
while walking a step behind
You gave so much praise and glory
When you were the one with all the strength
Never one to complain
You were my hero and everything I'd like to be
Like the song you were the wind beneath my wings
Your kindness never went unnoticed
I've kept it all here in my heart where it will remain
And I want you to know that I wouldn't be the person I am today
if it hadn't been for your loving ways
You are the reason I know what true love feels like
Because I know you loved me truly and unconditionally
Always my supporter lifting me up so high
You were my defender who fought for and believed in me like no one else
ever has
Because of you I got to witness genuine kindness in it's purest form
You were never far from my thoughts
And now you're always there when I close my eyes
You tucked me in so many times with bedtime stories
always making me feel right at home
So now I'm tucking you in and I know you are at home where you are
Nothing I could ever say or do would be enough to honor the person you were
The most gentle soul I've ever known
The best person in this whole wide world
Everyone says you were blessed to live a long life and I know you were content
But I'm the blessed one because I got to make memories with you
I got to laugh with you and cry with you
Sitting at the kitchen table we talked about any and everything
You never made me feel that I was silly or wrong
You just let me be myself completely
We got to see each others true colors shine through
And I always admired how beautiful your's were
In this old world without any color
You were a wildflower
© Ashley Rodden. All rights reserved
I love you Grandma so much! I don't know when I'm going to stop hurting but I know you wouldn't want me to get down so I got my chin up and I know you love me. Thank you for everything!
Ashley Rodden May 2015
Imagine that YOU'RE the prize and the safe harbor for him. Imagine that he would do ANYTHING to get into your heart and your life. Imagine that he yearns to be with you because you are who you are. Because he loves you more than anything he's ever loved before....
Then snap back into reality because it's all just wishful thinking after all.
Ashley Rodden Apr 2014
Why can't you see it when you look deep into my lying blue eyes?
How don't you feel it when you're deep inside?
When I put on a face and force this fake smile,
How can you not tell that something is eating me alive...?
I can see the monster so clearly in my own reflection,
But you don't seem to notice the bruises and scars of my self affliction,
They are so apparent to this restless, aching heart but,
Maybe you can't see because you don't have the time to watch me fall apart...
This heart of mine is so dead and bloated  
How can't you feel or smell that when you hold me?
There is so much weighing heavy on my mind,
That I'm running out of places for it to hide.
There's an endless aching in my bones,
A nervous ticking in my brain,
Am I really that good at putting on a face?
Apparently, I've had a lot of practice,
So I'll just continue to express these feelings freely
in the only thing that takes the time to listen,
                                                                            my poetry...
Ashley Rodden Jan 2018
Twist around as the sun drowns
Stick pills in your mouth and go to bed
We're not doing this again
We ain't got the time
You keep me locked up in your broken mind
And I keep searching never to find
A light behind your eyes
You keep living in your own lies
Keeping me guessing, keeping me terrified
Lock me in, knock me out talking like you do
You can't exist within your own head
So you insist on haunting mine
You take everything from my world then
Say, "Please help me?" right before you fall again
Keep me dumb, keep me paralyzed and I wonder why...
Why keep swimming when I'm drowning?
You're not the saint you externalize to be and
You spit out the hateful
Using your words formed as weapons against me.
Ashley Rodden May 2014
You loved words more
than the person
who inspired you
to write them...
so, now
what do your
words even matter...?
Ashley Rodden Jun 2018
You do what you do
        And I will do what I do best
Resenting every word you've ever said
         Load your words and fire with haste and regret
We're lost,
                  lost in our own minds.
Where do you get your facts from?
You don't change for anyone.
To celebrate the past we hate for attention
And hang it for everyone to see.
                  You said too many things that you meant
And I no longer think for myself
                  
                   Confused, whom do I go to now?
How can I trust you?
                   Break it down before it's even built
Making sounds just to be heard
Making mistakes just to feel guilt
Setting traps just to see hurt
                   You talk a lot, but should I, do I even care?
Suspecting the worst,
It's not crazy, it's called art.
Ashley Rodden Mar 2021
I've been up for days,
trying to find a way to write this confession down
for what I've done, I am not proud
but there's no need to pretend, no need for innocence
just got to be honest now

The verdict has come in,
it says I'm guilty for these sins of mine
i thought I could escape, but then I finally felt the weight,
of all your crimes
it's passion, it's not love, infatuation never ends up right

Ten thousand times I have screamed
over and over for you to notice me
until my voice breaks
for all this heartache
to gently fade away

Where are the pictures, of you and me?
put aside for no one else to see
afraid of what they might say
but if my heart breaks
at least I still have your yesterday

Not everything said should be heard
some things should stay
buried in the dirt
and when there is no target for your anger
could it be that you're the one who is hurt?

So many pointless conversations
about who's right or wrong,
you or me
every mirror it hides a different reflection
and we both got faces that we don't like to see

But I'll try to find some shelter in this quiet beauty
of a silent night
when the sun has finally set
and pray this worry will finally leave my mind
where it's just me and this pale moonlight

When I think of fates worse than death
all I can think of is something you once said
we were golden, bright like the sun
and now I am stranded
knowing I was never truly the one

With an ocean of anger flowing through me
blood-stained and broken from what I failed to see
that just like a snake charmer you led me astray
now I'm living in distress
just hoping some help is on it's way

In the midst of this storm searching for shelter
i came upon one single feather
and made a half-hearted wish for something better
all the while being gracefully cursed
i thirst

Burned into these ashes and soil
i'm dyed-in-the-wool
there's iron in my blood, yet i'm still so vulnerable
but after I'm truly gone, and once my heart finally leaves
you will be left alone to the wolves and real thieves.
You
Ashley Rodden Oct 2020
You
In the morning when I wake
And the sun is coming through,
You fill my lungs with sweetness,
And you fill my head with you
Shall I write it in a letter?
Shall I try to get it down?
You fill my head with pieces
Of a song I can't get out
Can I be close to you?

Can I take it to a morning
Where the fields are painted gold
And the trees are filled with memories
Of the feelings never told?
When the evening pulls the sun down,
And the day is almost through,
The whole world it is sleeping,
But my world is you
Ashley Rodden Dec 2019
You got friends who got friends who got this
You don't need anyone anyhow
So, I don't come around no more
******* in keeping score and now I'm gone
On your own, been feeling all alone?
And I ain't never going to come back home
It's all in your head, staying stuck in your head
Taking those handcuffs off because here comes another one
You got friends
Got nights that got time for wasting
Got lines that burn when you say them
And got songs that play when you play them
Go, what are you waiting for?
Show them the world is yours and take it all
You're not on your own, don't have to be alone
Got that medicine to catch you when you fall
I could be the one who got away
Or could I be your biggest mistake?
Ashley Rodden May 2014
You broke a promise again
Imagine that
Me being let down by you
Left to grovel on the cold hard ground
What an emotional wreck I turn into
When you don't do the things
You say you're going to
Breaks my hopeful heart right in two
Devastates my once excited soul
That you can hurt me like you do
Why?
So little to you do I mean?
What is so hard about keeping your word to me?
Isn't that all most men have?
You can always justify anything though
It's almost impressive how you always make yourself and your side sound so good
You never run out of answers but
What does that matter if you can't hear my questions...
So tired of being made to feel inadequate and less important
You want a two way street...?
Then maybe you should learn to share the road
Why must we always compete?
I thought we were on the same team...?
You can be so cruel with your words sometimes especially when
You spit them at me so carelessly
Didn't anyone ever teach you to think before you speak?
You like so much to debate
Well now allow me to deliberate about what I really feel and think
You don't want me to be so emotional or upset
But how should I react
When the person I love is breaking the heart inside my chest...?
You're so much smarter than me so please tell me
How to feel, what to think, and who I should be
You're right about us sounding good on paper
Imagine that you being right about something....
That's got to be a curse and yet it you embrace
Sorry I couldn't surpass your expectations
I know you always wanted to find an exception
To all your rules about love and life
Maybe someday you will find it
And for her sake I hope she has no feelings
Sorry you think I'm spoiled
Guess I thought the Queen of your heart deserved to be put on a pedestal
If I'm going to be a princess
Guess I should find a prince charming to take care of me then
What's so wrong with me wanting things my way for a change?
Don't you know all you would give me you'd get back ten fold?
Never thought I wasn't worth your undivided attention
Didn't realize your time was so precious
Your life is definitely more important than mine though
I'm just a nobody living in *** ****** Missouri
Didn't realize I was dating such a big shot...
Guess because I loved you before you became so hot
I loved you before you got so busy
I loved you when you were hopeless and un-happy
I was there for you to lean on or to listen whatever you needed
You're the only man I've ever believed in
I let my guard down
Let myself fall
Let you tear down all my walls
Disregarded my intuition and my gut
Passed the point of no return
Stood still when instinct told me to run
Don't I give you all you want and more?
I'm always at your beckon call
Now tell me what the hell for?
Is this all in vain?
Should this not torment my soul?
Tell me why I don't deserve all you have to give me?
Why don't I deserve love that is true?
Why do you get my hopes up
And then let me down like it's no big thing?
I'm in love with you, though I never wanted to be
And this is why because what you view as love
is
*******  killing me...
You get all of me so why don't I get all of you..?

— The End —