A candle burns somewhere inside of me
And keeps its light despite the steady rain.
I wonder at its constance in the cold
That, flickering on occasion, never dies.
And through the dark a glow reaches my eyes
Like a distant sun; rising and fading

I wait for the sound of thunder fading–
This storm has so recklessly lived in me,
And with it’s biting wind, has stung my eyes.
Though only raging from within, the rain
And sky both fall and weep as daylight dies
But still the candle burns despite the cold

Larceners masked as lovers leave me cold;
Deceivers and thieves with faces fading,
Whose winter hands freeze when summer’s warmth dies–
Craving heat I cannot offer, watch me
Shiver. Each doubt descends like falling rain;
An infinite dance behind my closed eyes.

And the uncertain glow still meets my tired eyes
The blood in my veins boils while theirs stays cold
Those hands I once held and fell for like rain
Those flames for me perpetually fading
With their trails of dark smoke following me
Yet my sallow light persists, it never dies

The sky is drenched in black, the old sun dies
I watch it pale and sink before my eyes.
But it will resurrect again, like me
Each morning from the heavy sheets and cold
The flame will not go out, the darkness fading;
Fleeing from me like quickly passing rain

I stand with burdens heavy in the rain
Holding onto the light that never dies
Wishing to feel the hush of the storm fading
No saltwater stinging and staining my eyes
For once, to feel fire chase away the cold
A heat or heart that warms but does not burn me

.And sometimes the rain gets in my eyes
Sometimes light dies, and leaves me cold
Yet still the candle burns; No longer fading.

***** earth-stained
Fingers dig,
Shovel out the wreckage,
Raid the tomb-
A useless search.
No treasures sleep
Beneath my skin,
I am only bones
And blood;
Shadows and
Memories.
So, take those too
Before you go,
Leave me emptier
Than I was before.
There is nothing
Worth stealing
From me
Anymore.

I cry and care
Too much;
My heart
Is a thing
To be left
Untouched.

This silence yawns
Into my soul,
So widens the abyss.
Fissures crack
And then expand;
A parting lover's kiss.
An echo ricochets
Between these walls of
Lifeless stone
The word that rings
Inside my head:
*alone
     alone
           alone.

I am not Atlas
I cannot bear
The weight
Of the skies
That I am
Under

One day your branches
Will not stretch
Towards me.
One day your roots
Will recoil.
One day your bows
Will grow to
Abhor me.
One day I will sink
In the soil.

My rib cage is
Collapsing;
All the butterflies
Inside me
Have died

She will have fireworks
In her eyes
And lips that steal
The words
Out of your mouth

She will be made
Of wind and wildfire
And you will be
Consumed
By her

She will be light
Where I am
Shadow
And heat
Where I am cold

She will not be heavy
In your arms when you hold her
And I will curse my darkness
For leaning on your shoulder

I built my hopes
On dreams of you
With parapets
And spires
Lofty columns
Reaching into
Amaranthine skies

But castles are not
Meant to stand
Atop unsure foundations
And these walls
Become so fragile
With your cyclic
Oscillation

She clings
With lonely hands
To thorn-ridden
Roses
And yet
She is
Bewildered
When her hands
Begin to
Bleed

Strangers at the edge
Of the churchyard
Cry their
Crocodile tears
And murmur
Dull regrets into
The dampened earth,
While the sad girl lies
In a Soulless Garden

Ravens watch
From the gloom of
The yew tree
And join in the
Mourner’s requiem,
While wringing hands
Throw lilies
Onto the upturned soil,
And the sad girl’s soul
Bleeds sorrow

Harrowed faces
Fade into the fog
And the bell
In the church tower rings
And the Ravens
Leave their tree
And the soul of the sad girl
Grieves alone
By the stone
In her Soulless Garden

She leans
Against the wall
A flower
Wilting
In the shade
He is sunlight
Suffocating
Beneath the
Gathering clouds
So far beyond
Her reach

The heavens
Break apart
When his heart
Becomes
Too heavy
And the rain is
Liquid loneliness
On her skin
Reminding her
Of all the lovely things
They could have been.

I have a garden
Full of words
That thrive
On suffering,
Flowers blooming
In my pain
Sprouting with
Each new wound

I wander in
To water them,
Eyes filled with
Melancholy,
And reap fresh tears
To quench their thirst
That they might
Grow for me

So when they've
Blossomed fire bright
As my agony
Worsens,
I organize them
Neatly
Into stanzas,
Lines and verses.

You belong with someone
Who is built of stronger things
A heart that isn’t crushed
By the sad melodies it sings
But I am made of brittle bones
Of sinew torn and muscles weak
Of a mind that always fails to find
The words that I should speak

My shoulders will not bear the weight
Of your sorrows and mine
Without adding new fractures
To my already splintering spine
Your hands deserve to hold a heart
That warms you at your core
But holding mine will only leave you
Colder than before.

The Weary, they wander
Tempest-tossed
Onto my
Lonely shores,
Sailors with
Shipwrecked vessels,
Travelers grim with
Soles scraped sore

They seek to quell
Their solitude
Ill fated and alone,
And finding me
Beside the sea
Lamenting,
They postpone

I welcome them
With flames alight
Inside the hearth
Of my heart
Although I know
They never stay,
That soon they will
Depart

Every time that
One arrives
The feeling sprouts
Anew
He'll leave me
And I know it,
But there's nothing
I can do

I am Calypso, cursed
To long for love
That is unchanging
No solace rolls in
With the tide
The tempest, still,
Is raging.

I dreamt of rain and wind and fire
Of darkened days surpassed
Until with dreary eyes I'd wandered
Through the looking glass

Treading in the icy swells and
Going through the motions
Pretending that I swim just fine
In overwhelming oceans,
Salt-stained skin and choking throat
Floating in a sinking boat

Descending into darker depths and
Whispering lies in failing breaths
"I’m doing well, I’m only tired"
Twisting, tangled, morphing, mired
“There’s nothing wrong, I’ll be okay”
Drifting, drowning, cast away

Pushing through the iron tide and
Reaching for a hand to guide,
In sorrow I look to the shore
But find that it is there no more,
With blurred eyes I have sailed too far
And lost the light of the North Star.

Sadness has eyes
That never stop leaking
And two lips that tremble
Whenever she's speaking.
Don't let her find
A tear in your heart,
Because if she does
You'll drown there in the dark

Fear has two hands
That fidget and shake
With a voice like knives she whispers
All the risks I shouldn't take.
She closes all the windows
And stands watch at the door
To make sure I'm not tempted
To go out and explore

Loneliness is shrouded
In a suffocating cloak
It's heaviness she often shares,
It smothers me like smoke.
She shivers, aching in the cold
With arms outstretched and yearning
For a love that never lingers
To leave a fire burning  

Happiness is fickle
She seldom comes to stay
Her light once filled my soul but now,
That glow has gone away.
With all these faces that I know
I tell myself I'm fine
But through the glass I see the truth:
Their faces mirror mine.

In the Garden of Memories
I tread softly
For dreams lay buried
Beneath the soil,
Freed from the
Binding ties
Of worldly toil

Auras etched in
Marble epitaphs
And sculpted
In statuaries,
Traces of warm
Remembrance
In the solitude
And stone.

We were like two ships
Passing in the night,
Fading with the
Waning light

Two glowing sparks
Extinguished
Before they could
Ignite

Two lines,
Perpendicular,
That met and then
Departed

The knowing
Of beginning's end
Before it had yet
Started.