When I slip naked
into my bed of sleep

I long for peace
and then you come along

with the violence
of dreams
that long for truth

Intrude
lie on me
with the weight of words
spoke in a dream
and yet
in vigil heard

scared? he asks.
yes, I say.
of what? he asks.
your smoke
your songs
your sin,
I say.
oh, he says.
my heart; it falls,
I say.
then fall, he says.
unfair, I say.
why? he asks.
will you stay?
I ask.
I can’t, he says.
scared? I ask.
yes, he says.
of what? I ask.
your hair
your heart
your heat,
he says.
oh, I say.
my heart; it falls,
he says.
coward, I say.
his lips, I kiss.

i want to scream you through my mouth.
i don't have to exist any longer, as sun
shine or stretched clothing that doesn't
fit any longer, the shirts in your drawer,
the scarves fumbled with and discarded
underneath the stairs of a community c
ollege. if you want this, would you tell m
e. i don't have to step outside this door,
not once or twice without you. because,
of course, there are better things. i don
't think i make any more sense than pre
tty birds that cheep unicorn songs, and
grow shelters for their green-houses. i
could write you a song, if you'd like.

when the sun shines for the second tim
e, i'll let you know. right now the clouds
are labelled grey, and drawing islands i
n the discovering sand does not remedy
seasonal blues unaffected by the medic
ation of your smile and racing for play-g
round swings that cut up my thighs any
way. if i could put you on repeat, i woul
d, but life ain't youtube, and people ain
't paintings you can put in a frame and
hang on the wall, they ain't songs you
can listen to until you go cross-eyed wi
th giddiness. i'm not new anymore, i'm
words i've already written, places i've
already been, i am people unfamiliar b
ecause i've talked to them for so long.

Come one! Come all!
To the Carnival of Fools!
Come look! Come Look!
A delectable hook
Horror and pain
For those who played the game
Here we have Wrath
Envy is in his path
Sloth and then Greed
But they're not in the lead!
Lust, and there's Pride
Gluttony's here for the ride.
But here's the best
A girl much like the rest.
Pretty and pert
With a knack to hurt
Looks down on others
Her sisters and her brothers
Yep she's hot stuff
Cuz she knows she's good enough
She's the very best
Cuz she's prettier than the rest
Until she met a man
Who had another plan
Now, she's here
Her face laced with fear
Beaten and and heavily bruised
She's been thoroughly used
Her cage is her lies
See the guilt in her eyes?
She's done this to herself
She put her soul on a shelf
Is she stuck here forever?
Will she complete her endeavor?
It's all up to her
Perhaps when Satan's not the chauffeur.

The snow lofts on the cities cold air. The drenched earth, to cold to drink in the wet, spills pockets of slush and snow onto our paved plastic world. The cold slows the city down and the skirted girls are bundled in their polyester puffed shields. A still, tranquil quietness presents itself and the heat from the coffee escapes the cup much like we might imagine a soul departs its host. With chilled dried hands the vain cover their hair and curse the moist air. The homeless huddle in quiet desperation hoping to fight mother’s winter’s rude return, her warm ***** of summer seems so long gone. My transparent reflection on the glass separates me as I gaze into the gray dismal sky and dream of walks, gloved held hands. Pulled together at the heart, the cold does not pierce loves warm undying barrier. I imagine her porcelain skin, blushed cheek, and red wetted lips as the chilled air crystallizes the sparkle in her sea green eyes. She sees through me. I don’t exist. With empty cup and left tip, I wake from this dream, put on my armor and walk past my life back to where reality and angst wait.