All I have to do is show up,
Gain momentum;
Give you one last rep,

Another verse
To finish this poem.

I have always dreaded
Doing the plank,
Now I can hold it
For a full minute,
Without tearing up.

Lift me up

Talent is not enough

Writing is a muscle,
I had become rusty —
Now planning my sessions in

The more I work out
The more I want to write.

Create,
Train hard

The benefits of a sweat
Back to the pleasure
of my pen,

I am looking forward
To my best poem yet.

A placeholder ring
Temporary meaning
I vow in-between.

Hold my spot
Til better comes along

Who is going to tie the knot.

A lady in waiting,
Eternity does not come easily
Or swiftly.

One who seeks a definite answer
Needs patience indefinitely.

Does Mr. Right
Promise all the right things
Right now,
Enough to keep me hungry?

A short-term solution
When I dream of a
Permanent situation

A preview of what is real
All I see
Is intention to commit,

When does forever start
If not today?

Hot like fire,
Cold as ice

If stares could ****
My feelings would freeze.

He ignites
Light in my eyes,
Sends shiver
Down my spine.

I jump in the shower,
Burn with vigour
To cool my temper.

Extremes,
I am always at extremes,

It is either, or

I gauge for
Equilibrium.

Even my coffee needs a pep talk,

For I feel no relief when the
caffeine kicks in.

I know the tools
Time heals;
Not all wounds
Are bad memories to ****.

Yet I go to war defeated
Escape in the world of dreams,
Only to wake up even more
drained.

Time heals, they say, but how
much time — when it seems
infinite.

Switched off the router today,
Waited a few seconds
Maybe my energy will start
blinking
again.

Not yet,
Dear friend.

Be patient,
The sun has not set.

My coffee just kicked in, and I can
still write a poem.

I see my book on your shelf
And yours on mine,

I would take our afterthoughts
And turn them into rhyme.

Every love story starts with
A blank page.
Take note,

People still write letters
Left for others to quote.

Each day with you
Leaves a poet at a loss for words.

I love you, Darragh.

A time for us,

A private bookcase
Sealed with kisses.

Wrapped in love
Changes one.

Whether it is for the better,
I know not.

Hard to believe
In easy love

When emotional scars
Still cloud the mind.

Wrapped in your arms
Feedback that binds.

Easy to believe
In compromise.

I am changing,
I know that now.

Do not throw in the towel,
I will gladly fold mine.

The world put to a halt,
In lockdown
Creating this cocoon of ours.

Morning kisses
Conversations on toast
Another coffee for this sleepyhead,

It is in those seconds you do not notice
That it hits me the most.

Who will we be
When this page goes down in history?

Dressing sharp for a burger
Dancing to silence,
I will remember

Feelings on the tip of my tongue
Slowly unlocking  -

Truth lights up the dark

I fell in love
During lockdown.

I just ordered
My third cup of coffee
After all, I am in good company
Words spilled before me.

Could they have known —
I will always look for
The smell of old books
In this digital world.

Words, my words,
My heart treasures
To put pen to paper.

Time is unkind
For a writer,

Nothing is ephemeral.

You are
A page marked by a folded corner
A love I will come back to
In the future.

I will order
Those extra fries
Like the best things
In life

One is never enough.

If everything
We have been through
Did not put a halt —
A story
We keep coming back to

Are we moving forward
Or am I in love
With a bookmark?

Do not take it too seriously,
Following a recipe to a tee

Unless you are making
Cupcakes,
No need to fake it
‘Til you make it,
It is a sweet life
You are baking.

A creature of the moment
A pinch of salt
Is the secret

Your concoction
Puffs up in the oven —

The frosting,

Make it
‘Til you become it.

My niece

Hugging me tighter

Than usual;



Words spill

On my heart

Making a mess

My mind

Will not erase;



Kissing me sweet

Clenching my fists;



The big things

Rest on that microscopic grin

On the right corner

Of my lips --



That is where you lie,

In the space between

My lines.

I let him in
Through the back door

He alone
Holds the password.

Seldom knocks
But often enough;

Through the tiny peephole
Of the unresolved,

I take the chain
Off the door.

I keep my skirt
While he unbuttons my heart

That door policy is rough
But he earns my trust;

That love hurts
'Til a gentle push.

Unlock
The secrets to my core;

The fissure
Of pleasure

For a full-frontal
Of my soul.

He sneaks
In the back door

Only he knows
The password;

No one is welcome
But one.

She was,
She used to be,

I still startle

There will no longer be
Any new memories.

I look up
When the skies cry
When there is not a cloud in sight

I talk about her in the past tense now.

Eye on my arm
God squeezes my heart,

I remember the feel
Of toying with her
Sagging skin
’Til mine ages,
I will beam at my ink.

I talk about her in the past tense now.

On nights I cry,
On fine nights
I burst with life,

She cradles my heart.

On the other side
The truth lies
On the other side
Truth
Lives in plain sight.

Blinded by the sun
My five Euro shades
Unveil what I shun
I am paying
A king's ransom.

'Til worlds collide
'Til I crossed to the other side
He never lied,
Lived another truth
By my side.

Your actions echo love,
My rendition of it;
Why don’t they linger
Like words will.

Your actions parade love
That I applaud;
Why can I not trust them
Unless I have it in print.

I write
Poems of love
For a man of few words.

I feel
Acts of love
For a writer, is it not enough.

Monday has a bad reputation


Before dawn,
Already frowned upon.
A lousy onset
Before it even started.


Monday has a bad reputation
I am dragging myself out of bed


When I should be clenching my fists,
Going in for the ****.


The titillating hope of the beginning
The victory dance when one wins
You gave me Friday this morning.


I have been in love with you
Since that first night
I laid eyes on you;


Still turning it around
Eight years in.


You and I,
An empty bar,

Rewriting Monday's light.

The wipes do not work
My eyeliner, smudged;
Words at war
Words when calm.

The Einstein hair
Bad morning breath;
A shadow of a smile
You standing against the light.

Ravaged by tragedy
Fresh bread from the bakery;
I lean in
For my forehead kiss.

Last night at war
The morning calm
–  Coffee is ready
Did you sleep on it?

Close
But not intimate;
Friends
Without benefits;

Love of my life
How do you stay
In my life.

We snap a picture
Immediately
Look for the best filter.

Lovers to friends
A relationship on diet.

Lovers to friends
Pillow talk outside the bed.

Twenty-one days,
They say,
Only twenty-one days
Til a new habit
Has a face ;
Kicking the one out
They wish to replace.

I can and I will,
I have
Worn change
As a second skin.

Twenty-one days,
They say,
Rather a lifetime,
If I may.

For true smokers hate quitting
Who are we kidding –
No switch for a cigarette lit ;

A new regime
To be a little more fit,
Ending cravings that will never leave

With alternatives.

We persevere.
Like an alcoholic giving up the bottle ;
Not taking a drink will always be a battle.

Twenty-one days,
They say,
Forever, if I may.

I love my bad habits ;
Glory is in continuing

(to quit).

I am sitting
On a wobbly chair
Off balance, is there still a chance

It is not all bad
But since when
Is that enough

At least two have to be strong
One leg solid, the other consistent
Last two well built
Uneasy til I fix it

Lean back, I may fall
Find the centre of gravity though
I could rock.

You run,
Chasing after none
There is no fear in your momentum,
Not a bitter thought once fallen.
Your memories are new
At thirty-two, I have made a few.

You will run,
Chasing after some.
There will be fear in your momentum
Many bitter thoughts once fallen.
Your memories are new
How could I forget, mine are too.

We take a break from work
From life; and fights
People we avoid
People we adore
One and the same
When the head has already left.

Amongst strangers
Widened horizons
On a rooftop somewhere
Playing djembe in the middle of nowhere
Far from everything
Suddenly it hits

Less or more,
Who am I
Without my focal points?

I will be richer
In memories
Come back tanned,
Stuffed and happy
The routine continued just fine
Without me.

Those I avoid
Those I adore
Sitting at work,
My life; and fights
One and the same
Once the heart is back in the apartment.

When we look forward to
Do we leave it all
Wherever we go?

Looking back
Did I not take it all
Wherever I strolled?

Sun kissed,
The warm wind skating on my skin
One hand on the shoulder,

The other one holding on tight to this moment.

A day for the books,
In mine nonetheless

Our past months rumbling in my helmet,
Taking me on this ride to where we are heading.

I close my eyes to see

Right here, I am free.

Some people will never experience Berlin
Except through stories,
Have their thirst for the thrill quenched
Than by reading.
Close, but never close enough ;
I never saw that sunset,
Just the reflection of it,
And it was just as perfect.

Not all love stories have the happy ending
But that does not make them any less real
Than the real thing.

A new beginning,
A comparable ending
It is the same poem
I keep writing.

The message differs
The titles adjust
One more figure of speech
For picking up a broken piece.

Elusive alterations
Editing the outcome
A plethora of versions
For my book of poems.

Another round,
Back to square one
Are there any words left
This heart has not said.

If he really loved you...
If he really loved me, what?
I suffer from Fernweh constantly,
Which horribly translates to wanderlust in English
Read the irony;
Still, I am traveling.
His blue eyes gallivant for a split second,
Sensible to where his mind escapes to,
I let him.
I go fetch him water
He sneaks up from behind
Never turning around,
He sees my soul full frontal.
If he really loved you...
If I really loved him, I know
What works

He is foreign land,
And I do not own a map.

Half a life
Half a love
Undivided submission;

Half-hearted
I am utterly devoted
To lesser moments.

Between the sheets
The mind drifts
In search of atonement;

Part-time wrong
Entirely yours
An inevitable outcome.

It is living half a life
Accepting half love
Full-time;

My light,
Take me out of the dark

The courage within to say goodbye.

I will **** you with a metaphor
My feelings censored
Behind beautiful words.

I dare not say it to your face
The euphemism
When I am burning with anger.

Toying with the void
Here I concoct
The right expression;

My sweet weapon
Retort with an oxymoron.

Then nothing; no paradox or pun
I am even at a loss for a rhyme.

For when our eyes meet
It is poetry I read,
Without a word
We say it all.

I'm fine
When I am
I'm fine
When I am not
I'm fine
Whenever I am asked.

I am tormented
On the brink of madness
If I go through
Yet another sleepless night
Whenever I am asked,
I'm fine.

We talk more
Smile and joke
They are
The wrong words.

I am worried
Ashamed of breaking
I am crying for help
I will say
I'm fine
Instead.

I'm fine
When I am
I'm fine
When I am not
I'm fine
When I am everything but.

The biggest lie
The truth behind
Listen,
I am not.

What is the sound of love
But sweet nothings
I whisper to myself

The sound of heartbreak
But your silence
When I say them.

When is the time right
To float on cloud nine

When it is time
To fall flat-faced on the ground.

It stings
To have a wrong fixed

To be set free
A pillow wet with tears.

What is heartbreak
But sweet everythings
I whisper in your ear

The sound of love
But my words pounding
Through your heart.

Is it nostalgia,
Habit or that little culprit

The awakening
Once more
The heart dropped
As if you were never gone

We ignore the signs
That tear us apart
Though history taught us
We are not enough

Love with you,
In perpetuity, and never sure
I can without
But I would rather not.

She lives the poetry she cannot write
Not her words,
A life that became hers.
She has written fiction,
Dreams and speculations;
Until all turned into a tale
She did not long to put on paper.

She writes the poetry she cannot live
Her words,
Gives life when it is not hers.
She has had desires,
Loss and tantrums;
Turned nightmares into tales
On any piece of paper.

She lives the poetry she cannot write
Not her words,
A love that finally became hers.
She has written fiction,
Heartache and expectations;
That embrace in her coffee place
He took away her pen.

Today, I am saying yes
Today, I am saying I will
Today, All that I ever was
I am taking along with us.

I will bring home dessert
Even when you do not ask me
I will tell you the story
When you are not sharing it with me.

In the morning, I will continue talking
Even if you do not answer
Until you have had your coffee;
And in the evening, so tired,
You will hug me
While I am already sleeping.

It is not a lifetime I promise
But a routine we will cherish
It is not a lifetime I promise
But a routine we both wish

I will take your quirks and talents
I will embrace your light and darkness

Today I am saying yes
To the past, to now,
To our future, I vow.

I will not love you til the day I die
I will love you every day we live our lives.

Today we say we do
Today we say forever;
And I am yours,
Just the same, a little more each day;
Long after.

Lands and beliefs separate
But I know
We are watching the same sunset.
I catch the beginning
Colors waltzing
As the sun brushes against
The mountains;
Battling whether or not
I should send you
A message.

Yours is about to disappear
There is an order
In this mess of colors
Clashing into each other;
Dissipating fast
Behind the curtains of the sea
As far as the eyes can see;
Wondering if you will get
A message
From me.

We are thinking
The same thing
Guaranteed our longing will ****
The merit of this moment
When in fact, we alone
Want it tragic.
Hearts aligned
Into the darkness;
Such fools in the process
To believe you and I are that different.

What happens
When you are silenced
Ideas fight
Thoughts escape
Words stranded --
A broken one
On the tip of the tongue.
Only an opinion counts --
Not your own
Others, others talk
And you listen
Others, others argue
And you stiffen
What happens
When you are silenced
You hear everything
Your voice, stolen
All the questions
You cannot answer
Directed to you
But they will do it for you.

Whatever I choose to say
It would not have come out right anyway
I will make it worse
I will make it better
The words stuck --
A broken one
On the tip of the tongue.

What happens
When a writer is silenced
It is the best thing that can happen
I will not say a word
Because you listen to your own.
Words are my forte
My weapon of love
Of mass destruction
I will let the truth
That words cannot translate
Speak for me instead.

I met my future in the past
You kept me up all night;
Had I known
It will lead to now,
I would not have said goodbye.

I knew there was something there
Not meant for the long haul
Still went in to risk it all;
I swallowed my pride
You would become my life.

Oenomel, blending strength with sweetness
Many a time, farewell is a present;
You attract what you are
I thank you from afar;
For the rest of my days in that one night.

What distance separates
After being this intimate
And holding tight
To the one out of sight.

A stranger under the covers
The soulmate out in the open
Lovers at bay
And lovers that will not stay.

That chatter of passerby
The friendly advice
One too many
One is enough.

It works that way
I cannot write about someone
Unless I have felt a certain way
Unless there it is
The potential
I can no longer be without them.

I let time pass
Which I never do
Once I am inspired
I will write on the spot
Under any circumstance

On my brown skin with a marker
On the back of this flyer
Even on the magazine cover
That belongs to the hair parlor.

I think of you fondly
But my wont to write
Never comes out ardently
The paper still blank
Though I let months turn things around.

Writing is my sole indicator
If not on paper,
It will not last in time either.

Blank canvas
I cleaned my brush
So do I need to know
About your past
And drag mine
Into this now?
Saturated colors
Some dark edges;
A focal point
Can we not paint on white
Start out right?


Blank canvas
Is not ours
I do not require
A new work of art,
Superimposed
Upon our past.

I take you
As you are
Along with each stroke of brush
You have crafted until now;

The anatomy of us
Overlaps with the portrait of our lives
I see the whole spectrum
Let us look at the big picture.

I feel at home on the road
After a few days
I already feel that I belong.
I mesh with the crowd
Even when I stand out,
I will observe from the corner
Then I will stand with you
At the centre.
It sinks in;
Your beauty
Your habits
I emerge richer
Because of our differences
In culture.

I am at home on the road
I bring my dreams and memories along.
A moment
Between you and me
A little piece of life
The cyan blue in my mosaic;
I will always understand
Though language is not even
A common ground.
I have gone this far
And still,
All is familiar;
Because at times, new friend
Home is a state of mind.

For glory

I am writing
For glory

I am lighting
This cigarette
For I deserve it
I am having
This cigarette
Because I am
No longer addicted

I am writing
For glory, my own
For once
I am stoked

I am hardest
On myself
My greatest critic
Is always editing

A sweet moment
To be content
Enjoy, my friend,

Glory is also
Being able to praise oneself.

May I borrow your line
Until I come up with mine
Your words handpicked
My intentions are solid;

I love her
But you say it better.

Allow me to inhale your thoughts
Exhale your sweetness in my voice
I will quote you
Until my own will do;

I love her
One day will be enough.

I ran to the top
About to roar;

I held back instead
That unsullied feeling
Before anything is ever said

Take a second,
My heart raced
Not often enough
We relish.

A triumph so sweet
Silence leaves my lips;
Our secret
I stayed speechless.

Once I unleash the words
They belong to the world.

I like things
That do not belong
Mislaid, lost
Dropped, thrown
How do they end up in my frame
How come I keep on noticing.

I am attracted to things
That do not quite seem to fit
Subtly ruining it;
A smudge, a note
A love
Unwritten in the stars.

A weakness
For displaced happiness
Somewhere I never intended;
Maybe,
My love,
I misplace my heart in the right spot.

How long is now
This moment
Will last a lifetime

How long is now
My body endures the hours

But my mind took a halt

As soon as I entered the hall
I stopped minding the clock.

I shut my eyes
The goosebumps never lie

I awake in paradise
The soul dancing to the bass.

I lose myself
As much as find



Exactly who I am.

The music becomes
My second skin
I look around and
You too, have the same discipline

How long is now

We are infinite in this crowd

Then, I will remember your smile
Your heart sounds just like mine in Berghain.

I take your mind to bed
Any opinion
You ever had,
Stark naked.

I start fondling
Your musings;
I envision
Your thoughts on my skin.

Your ideas enter me;
I feel myself
Tingling
From all the talking.

All my dreams flow
You, too, are close --
Baby, let me swallow
Any last word.