The beholden larva beckons
for none to behold
the simplicity of its movements.

The predator of hole-ridden leaf fields
begs for notice
to be postponed.

There is safety that will follow
the eyes that continue
to follow past it.

In another cycle it will leave
behind the simplicity
that it now knows.



The beholden chrysalis beckons
for none to behold
its lack of movement.

The loiterer of leaf-ridden branch
begs for notice
to be postponed.

Lacking the safety of hymenopterans
its predecessors continue
to follow past it.

In another cycle it will leave
behind the simplicity
the pharate now requires.



Behold the transformed beckon
for none to behold
its clumsy movements.

The maunderer of pushing winds
received no notice
of what it postponed.

There was safety before
the forceful gale
followed past it.

In this cycle it has left
behind the simplicity
it now longs for.



It struggles to hold fast
to the branches
it once traversed so easily.

A gift to observers
is the burden's cause
carried in silence.

The most momentous utterance that has ever summoned forth an alteration escaped from his lips.
The room forgot its dimness as if the attribute had never previously existed.
Each syllable bombarded their surroundings in waves of brilliant neon.
Each percussionary word collaborated with the next to create a rhythm remembered by only two.
This unforeseen ballad to avoid embarking on Sisyphus' task.
This single verse sang by the jester to relieve Orsino's passions.
A battle song of beating drums being pounded by a racing heart.
A lullaby in remembrance of the warm pillow where her head once rested in soft slumber.
A requiem for the dying desires breaking through their cages behind her eyes.

The most momentous bravery that has ever required assistance was gasped into her lungs.
A dimness crossed her face following the shadow of her hand.
The room erased the color from each syllable that he had previously uttered.
Each syllable became a tiny vacuum attempting to pull the air from within her.
Each chiming tear collaborated with the next to create a rhythm remembered by only one.
This unforeseen ballad was a spell to repel erotes.
This single verse sang by Phaeton to Zeus in his last breath.
A battle song of once intact dreams being beaten by a false heart.
A lullaby in remembrance of the warm heart that put her mind at rest.
A requiem for the dying innocence uncaged for all to see.

He keeps the contents of his life in boxes. The clear Rubbermaid totes with the locking lids that keep the contents from spilling out across the floor when they are least needed. The same containers that keep everything within protected against assailing liquid falling from above. Most of his possessions have long since been discarded, but there is an odd assortment of memories that are kept safe.

A model rocket that his grandfather, long since passed, used to take him to open fields to launch towards the heavens. It never quite reached, but in his mind he was chasing down the parachute of a spaceship returning from a long voyage.

Birthday cards received when it was still exciting to count the years. When the cards still had happy monsters devouring birthday cake and the short handwritten messages read "We are so proud of the person you are becoming".

First place medals from sports competitions, spelling bees, and field days. A single second place medal from a martial arts tournament where brute force could not overcome the wisdom of an elder opponent.

The metal plates off of every baseball trophy earned since playing teeball at age four. When the shelves could no longer support the weight of the trophies they were discarded, and the cheaply made nameplates are the only reminder left that they ever existed.

Too many years of school yearbooks with sloppy signatures following words of wisdom reminding him to stay cool, and that he would see you all again after the summer.

A red, sweat-stained Schlitz hat that was stolen from the older, much more cool, cousin. He stopped asking for its return years ago, and has probably forgotten that it even existed.

Certificates that prove he was once a member of Builder club, Beta club, Phi Theta Kappa, National Honor Society, Student Government, and Junior Ambassadors to the Chamber of Commerce. Reminders of times when joining clubs meant you got to miss class to hang out with your friends.

A single blue ribbon knotted three times as a reminder that it should never be untied. Beyond those simple knots are all of the love letters that were written between him and the first girl that was able to open his eyes so that he could see what love, and loss, truly meant.

An old, barely functioning, paintball gun that he bought with the money from his first real job. The same gun that, through some miracle, gave him and his father their first common interest. He picks it up from time to time and pretends that they are still hiding behind bunkers ready to charge the opposing team.

A tiny red Rock 'Em Sock 'Em robot ring used as an excuse to wrestle around in bed with one of his closest friends on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The blue ring moved far away and has long since stopped answering her phone, knowing that the rematch of the century will never occur.

Diplomas from high school and college that will probably never hang framed on a wall. He was never truly proud of accomplishments so easily attained.

Hiding in the shadows of these boxes is each first kiss that is a stone sitting beneath the shattered mirror friendships that could not hold their weight. He is reminded to find either lighter stones or more sturdy mirrors in the future.

Friends that he has met in countless towns huddle together, trying to stay warm amidst the bitter cold they perceive around them. He calls or texts from time to time, but the embers cannot replace the pyre he used to provide.

Lovers that never expected the love they received in return bask in the solace of the fact that they are rarely seen or disturbed. He smiles when he comes across them, but knows better than to retrieve them from the storage where they are kept.

He still keeps all of the contents of his life in boxes. The same clear Rubbermaid totes with the locking lids, whose transparency allows him to view the contents from afar without disturbing them. He says he uses them so all of the contents don't spill out when he doesn't want them to, but his blurred vision reminds him that he chose the waterproof variety for a reason.

It would only take an hour or two to unpack everything at each new location he moved to, but he knows that the next time he unpacks he will not be doing it alone. It becomes more difficult for him each time he has to condense everyone and everything of import into totes light enough to carry to the next location.

All of the toothpaste has now been pushed from the tube.

Pushing the substance out was a simple task at first. When the toothpaste would overflow at the slightest compression when the cap was removed.

Day after day there was less and less minty paste within the tube, and this is when the struggle began. I pushed so hard that my fingers became reddened and sore just to get enough to produce a thin layer over the head of the brush.

As time progressed, there was scarcely anything left within the container, and that which remained started to harden and cling for its life on the edges of the tube.

The less that remained, the harder I pushed, and the more the tube resisted.

I put all of my weight on a large brush and compressed the plastic until I gave up with frustration. Then I just sat and stared at the mostly empty container of toothpaste. I contemplated why it would fight so hard to keep that last little bit.

I threw the container to the side and replaced it when the struggle became too much effort.

Then every day, for what seemed to be years, that tube sat in front of the mirror and never shrank in size. Even still, I'm not sure why I kept it there. There were moments when it looked up at me with its spiteful reassurance that this rubbery tube would never be fully devoid of its contents.

Even when other containers were completely emptied and discarded into the waste, this one stayed on the counter where it had always been.

I often wondered why I let it sit there for so long.
Decaying.

And then today something happened...
I saw your picture and realized I don't love you anymore.

All of the toothpaste has now been pushed from the tube.

His books are all jammed in the closet.
With clasping arms and cautioning lips
the Crier's voice would tell me --
O love is the crooked thing.
What weight o' woe.
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.
What did I know, what did I know?
But opportunity is real, and life is free.
Love strikes away the chains of fear.
It's the fire in my eyes.
That's what good for the soul,
and life is too much like a pathless wood.
Whose woods these are I think I know.
Through living roots awaken in my head.
(But near his ears, above his brains)
I don't want to go on being a root in the dark.
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
making the pathways neat.
Into his mind the turbid ebb and flow
that passes for thought.

And he likes having thought of it so well.
I am heir, and this my kingdom. Shall the royal voice be mute?

I never could talk to you.
The tongue stuck in my jaw.
My mouth is wet, my throat is dry.
Sighs, short and infrequent, were exhaled.
Slowly the sounds came back again.
A fearful trill of things unknown
occasionally breaks the silence,
which is the bliss of solitude.
I want it to confirm,
but the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token,
to shut the other's gaze down.

If unto me all tongues were granted
to never say nay,
for still I hoped to see the stranger's face.

Oh whence do you come, my dear friend, to me?
What makes thee startle
if you have seen all this and more.
White woman with numberless dreams,
dreaming of heroes.
Ever serene and fair,
seeker of truth,
your heart is luminous.
For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths-for you the shores a-crowding.
You are violets with wind above them.
Red roses at her feet,
her voice was like the voice the stars
had when they sang together.
So shake the very Heaven on high,
lady at whose imperishable smile,
on whose forbidden ear,
with love in the loving cup.
Does it come as a surprise?

Come! vouchsafe to me what has yet been vouchsafed to none—Tell me the whole story,
"To save my lady!"
Ye bid me tell a story too,
and you may see me cry.
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
And mix her woe and tears with mine.

But that too, I am afraid,
is faulty: oh, what shall I say, how is the truth to be said?
For if it were where it is not,
to weep would do thy glory wrong.
And I watered it in fears,
and it gives me a scare,
like a heavy load.

All the world wondered:
Why, what could she have done, being what she is?

Here is the deepest secret nobody knows.
I speak the truth in soberness, and say,
“I want you to know
one thing.
In all the creeds there is hope and doubt, but of this there is no doubt:
I would dare to say,
you made me want to be a saint,
and that has made all the difference.”.
I wonder do you feel to-day,
somebody loves us all.

And one man in his time plays many parts,
and, in parting from you now,
I walk away into the night.
He shall write no more.

Placed in plain sight as a place for curious eyes to rest
Lying upon the mantle was a single picture
Each day, the dust surrounding it seemed to swell,
And further shrouded the frame's crack
Shards of glass still fell from time to time
Each landing in its own bed of dust

To himself, he muttered that he should dust
Each time the phantom passed it to rest
And as always, he did not have the time
Claiming that in his mind there was a perfect picture
Heavy footsteps gave him away as the floor started to crack
Memories overcame and caused his heart to swell

Even then he wondered why he painted her so swell
How could he adore the one that blew his dreams to dust
Over the phone, he tried to answer, but his voice did often crack
When he tried to reproduce what he had with the rest
Too many times he had tried to create the same picture
Of what he once had, but in a different time

Finally he decided that he could waste no more time
Each day for a week he paddled over swell after swell
Each day for a week he could not jettison this faded picture
Lines blurred as tears mixed with paint and dust
Each obscuring line brought his soul more rest
Violently he hurled the picture, hoping he didn't crack

Each lonely moment inspired him to give it one more crack
Realizing that in this world, he only had so much time
Young love sank with the picture, and on the ocean floor it would rest
To move forward, all of his courage he had to swell
He put behind him the times of darkness, phantoms, and dust
In the days that passed he learned how to paint his own picture

Now more faces pass the mantle than he could ever picture
“Good thing you removed that horrid painting” they crack
“You finally took the time to clean up and dust”
“One day you will admit that we were right this time”
“Until I saw her today I thought my heart would never again swell”
“Friend is the best word for someone that makes you forget the rest”

Each day he tells himself he needs a little more time
Every smiling glance she gives makes him feel so swell
Letter one of each line will tell you the rest.

Thoughts escape through cracks and crevices of the swelling gray matter. Each breath forcefully exhaled through thinly parted lips pushes the unfinished coliseum constructed of heavy stones, weighted with unsure purpose, out into the previously unoccupied space before me. Each exhalation creates small beings composed of struggle that march mechanically into the arena. Ready to throw their lives on the line to fight for recognition. As these thoughts battle one another, one falls after the next. Once the battles between these thoughts has finished, and the coliseum is filled with dreams and ideas that will never find themselves fully recognized, only one stands victorious. Though battered and broken from the ****** battles it has fought, selflessness has conquered any that would seek to oppose it. It inhales the dire wounds caused to the others, and they stand before the crumpled mass that saved everything they fought so hard to achieve through personal sacrifice. Not knowing the events that occurred, they cannibalized selflessness to sate their primitive greed. Now a small portion of him exists within every ideal that escapes through pursed lips from the fields of grey matter where they were conceived. Through this process the idea of love was given life, and it will forever seek that selflessness that gave birth to it.