she guides my hand towards
her chest.
opens up with a sigh and
leads my fingers to her
crusted heart.

here. tear off these scabs so
I can bleed the
wounds
clean and let them close up
as smoothe scars
instead.
I refuse to hurt by
other hands than
yours.

this is love.
there are no band-aids
here.

Two months in love; two
decades they feel.

every morning we wake up
older, yet newborn.

I give you a rose with every
moon. soon I will have

to plant you a garden.
one petal for every sweet word.

one thorn to protect you from
each unkind one they'll speak.

beautiful arms. crimson kevlar.
daggers of green. sweet shields...

to believe beyond belief. leap,
choose flight over fall.

many name us naïve.
they do not know:

to loving artists, every day
is new year's eve,

year
zero.

His bad knee and my
high blood pressure saw us
ascending  
at a slow pace into the
giant hand of mist, running its
fog fingers between trees and
boulders.

having reached the first level,
we turned and looked as far as
the weather allowed.
it rained sideways, but the ground
held a few degrees below freezing.
trees, plants, stones... all was
covered in a layer of ice,
adding to itself with every drop
frozen.

feeling like Sam and Frodo for a
split second; lost in an alien
landscape.
even the dog sat patiently, shivering
with cold and exhilaration.
Øystein reached down and picked up
a blueberry encapsulated in

the cold, wet matter.
ate it. his dog reacted to the
crunshing sound of consumption.
nah, you wouldn't like this, buddy.
we walked next to the path that
had turned into a slippery death
trap, closing in on the peak.

the wind poked its way through
coats and boots, but we took
shelter beside an ice and snow
covered rock side.
the only people there.  
my best friend leaned back and
closed his eyes.
*wow... listen to the
mountain.

They haunt me when I'm asleep
They don't leave me alone when I'm awake
Tonight I will be stronger than the demons
They wait for me to fall into their land
Where they make me Believe anything they say
Sleep is overrated
Nightmares are underrated
Just a couple of hours until the battle is won
I will not let you take over tonight
Tonight the demons will have to dance alone
I will see the moon until it stops shining
And I will hear them Calling my name
Asking me to dance the dance of Death
Tonight my  demons will have to dance alone

the words were engraved,
a tattoo on her skin.
as a sweet reminder,
of all that she believed in.

but as she sees it in the mirror,
staring boldly back at her.
she starts to question truth,
and the lines begin to blur.

is there really such a  love,
which accepts you with your faults,
that doesn't give you pain
or personal assaults?

the kind that lasts forever,
firmly built on trust.
that's willing to face problems,
and doesn't fade to dust.

the type that will protect,
but never keeps the score.
and is filled with passion,
that is felt down to the core.

where patience is its shadow,
and anger is thrown away.
kindness fills the air,
and no one ever strays.

she thought that love had found her,
and had swept her off her feet.
she poured out her heart and soul,
but sadly felt defeat.

turning back at her reflection,
reading True Love Never Fails.
she feared that she had lost all faith,
in her treasured fairy tale.