"Where are your gloves?"
A man with watery blue eyes,
And steaming black coffee asks me.
I almost cannot hear him over the brutal wind,
The city taken by storm.

He leans closer and whispers,
"They are giving some away,
Under the bridge."
As if I know exactly which bridge he is speaking of.

Winking,
He continues past me on the street.
Homeless,
But fortunate in his kindness.

I tested her water.

She was almost frozen over.

Had I tried to dive right in,
she could have stopped my heart cold.

She said

*some are more shallow
than others,
so
don't dive here,
or you'll hurt
yourself.

You felt like paper
Flimsy and unsure
I was afraid to take
A picture with my
Mind. You might
Float away when
the flashbulb shines
Losing control of
Everything
Because all I can
Remember
Is kissing you in the summer
Sliding my hand up the back of your skirt
I loved you
I really really did
When I knew nothing else
But the skin on your face
Glowing green in the dashboard light
I cant think of another line for this poem
My heart is too broken to remember the rest

literally sick of a
dizzy world
            spin
ning spinn
ing spinnin
g sp
in ni
ng

out of it and
not quite sure what it was
in the first place

fade on down the road
spotty recognition

flaccid intellect

dear sarah.

i heard
today
that it was in your blood,
your bones,
your body
(the cancer, sneaking and slipping its way
into your sixteen-year-young heart,
that beats the same as mine).
i heard
today
your sister,
weeping,
and asking us if we could please,
just sign this card.
you're scared
and it would help.
i heard
today
the boy who loves you,
sniffling into your sister's shoulder
(no one had the heart to tell him
that the blackness is inside you),
and i heard, today, my heart
stop
and my throat
clog
and my eyes
fill.
dear sarah, i don't know you
well
but i wish you
well
and i heard today
so many hearts
break.

you've got sunshine in your eyes, her mother told her
and she knew it.

her toes itched to skip-skap
across pavements and leaves, swirl through
snow
dancing in their boots.

you've got sunshine in your eyes, her mother told her
and she felt it.

her smile could light hearts
set flame to
the day,
and laughter -
music.

you've got sunshine in your eyes, my mother told me
and i learned it.