How do I stay unobtrusive, yet undiluted?
Acceptable, but still true?
Easy to swallow—
without being overshadowed?
How do I shine
without blinding?

Am I too much?
Too big, too bold,
too hard to hold,
too complex to comprehend?
A puzzle missing pieces—
or a 3D chessboard
on a tilted table?
Am I quantum physics
to the everyman?

I don’t think so.

But I am the stars—
distant, untouchable.
A unicorn—
rare, almost unreal.
A manic pixie dream girl—
Traipsing through reality.
That's what they say,
Ficticios or fantasy
Maybe even fake.

How can I bear my soul?

How do you awaken a soul?
Through fireworks and bonfires?
Through grand adventures,
Or glass and ruby slippers?
A kiss in the rain, maybe—
Under a lamppost in Paris,
A waltz in a castle ballroom,
Or running through an airport gate
Just before takeoff?
A spinning camera, a swelling score,
A once-in-a-lifetime, cinematic something?

No.
Awakening the soul is simpler—
And yet, endlessly complex.
It happens in the red of grocery store roses at the airport,
In rushed breakfasts and packed lunches,
In kisses in threes,
And the way your hand finds mine
Without needing to look.
It lives in heard concerns,
In said apologies—
(and the changes that follow).
It's laughter breaking through after arguments
In silent morning cuddles
And the endless promise of staying

Setting a soul on fire is a spectacular thing,
But it’s the smallest sparks
That truly light the kindling.
And you, my love,
Have given me every quiet reason
For my heart to burn for you.

Footprints on the beach,
Picking up stories like shells for our collection
Every step we move forward is to leave behind something,
But what do we leave?
People?
Places?
Memories?
The old me?

Droplets in the ocean
Trying to change the way the tide is moving,
To become the tempest, I have to leave the stream,
But what changes?
People?
Places?
Temporary things?
The new me?

The sun sets on the mountains,
Taking away the warmth of day,
I find myself believing in wishes on stars,
And what will happen?
People?
Places?
Dreams?
The future me?

Sunshine and daffodils—
The heat of the sun beating down on the black hair you gave me,
The flush in my cheeks after too much time outside.
Waves rolling in the pools at Waterworld,
Happy yellow flowers brightening front lawns,
Easter decorations and chocolate eggs on store shelves,
Spring and summer warm

Colored leaves and frozen windshields—
The crisp crunch beneath my feet,
The scent of chocolate chip cookies and flour-dusted countertops.
Christmas songs drifting through grocery aisles,
Board games and hot cocoa by candlelight,
The bitter wind stealing my breath away,
Fall and winter cold

All year round, I find you in everything—
In the parts of me I love when I look in the mirror,
In every tumble that ends in laughter.
In Burger King breakfast sandwiches and Coca-Cola bottles,
In the echoes of road rage—your "creep" and "jerkwad" make me smile
The world, in its quiet ways, reminds me
Of how much I love you.

Sweet little bird with stormy eyes
You are not mine
Flap away to find
One of your kind
One that loves the mountains
One that loves the darkness at night
One that loves the calmness
Of the black and white knights

Funny little bird with eyes of the sea
You are not mine to keep
Fly away you will see
That I have set you free
I may have bruised your heart
But sweetie,
I didn’t tear it apart

Strong little bird your eyes are green
They are like the grass of spring
Dry your tears
And don’t you fear
When I locked you out
It was not to make you shout
My window was not your home
You will find your own

Kind little bird your eyes are like the bark
Of the tree you found and made your mark
I must point out
You’re happy now
Can’t you see?
You are better off without me

You say my name like venom, as if you are not the snake coiled around your own throat.
You blame him, as if it wasn’t your hands that traced across my skin.
You blame me, but I played the role you gave me—perfectly.

Oh, to be gold, you say.
Perhaps you thought digging was the way to become worth something,
My mistake—I should have known the grave you dug for me would swallow you instead.

In the wind of your mistakes, I am the ashes of a burnt down home
Carrying the embers of what you made me,
Wishing to set you ablaze