ORLA - Hello Poetry

ORLA Nov 2012

I'm not the type of girl who
promises forever.
I'm too realistic, and too
used to disappointments.
So I won't say I'll love you forever.
I love you right now.
I love you as much
as I know how.
And I will love you for
as long as I possibly can.

If it happens to last forever,
I'll be okay with that.
But you are human, and so am I,
and everything ends,
and that's okay.
So let's enjoy what we've got
while we've got it,
and when its time to move on,
lets shake hands and let go,
and take the good memories with us.

ORLA Nov 2012

Untitled

Slowly, slowly. . . Thrice-told tales
Are often those which stay with us
To haunt our dreams with milky colors
Of empty eyes and frozen tongues.
Rip the bandage from my skin
And blood begins to pour again,
Why must you twist this broken bird
Beyond all recognition?
Instead, I beg, go gently, slowly,
Help me breathe with mouth-to-mouth;
With your frozen tongue, tell stories
To my dreamless, empty eyes.

ORLA Nov 2012

Swing Club

Rock step, trip-le, trip-le*
Rock step, trip-le, trip-le

Judah bids us "Good morning!" at nine at night,
He's like Fred Astaire,
Big moves and big ears.

Dylan is late coming in,
Sliding out of his leather jacket with a sour expression -
He's too cool for this game.

Lindsey drags in the speaker system,
All goofy grins and ugly sweaters,
And she's so happy to see us.

Rock step, trip-le, trip-le

Andy with his slick moves
and slicker hair.

Matt who always smelled strange
but lost to Kevin.

Susan with her tight, swinging hips
and constant critiques.

Pete thinks he can do this,
and then breaks your arm.

Caleb concentrates too hard,
and tries not to look you in the eyes.

Josh gets bored with the basics,
deciding to breakdance instead.

Rock step, trip-le, trip-le
Rock step, trip-le, trip-le

And after an hour of being passed from one lead to the next
Like a hot potato,
And then standing with your back against the basement wall
During the free-for-all,
You decide you rather be studying algebra
and leave.

Lindsey waves goodbye.

Dedicated to the people I got to know in the most awkward way possible - in the cuddle.

ORLA Nov 2012

Anthem

Square your shoulders in the cold
Blow steam like fire from your lips;
You're still alive, you're going strong -
So strut a little, swing your hips!

So what the world is ******* to hell?
So Armageddon's started?
You're gonna let that hold you down
And leave you brokenhearted?

You feel the steel inside your chest?
You build that, fan it into flame,
And vow that when the enemy arrives
They'll know your name.

to America

ORLA Nov 2012

The One About Ty

Ty must have a poem written about him.
Preferably in small sentences.
With lots of exclamation points!
It should make people smile,
And introduce itself to everyone.
"Hello! My name is Poem!
What is yours?"
It will be short, like his stay,
So it should probably stop soon -
Too soon, like Ty.

Because someone I just met and probably will never meet again made my night. (Oh, the dangers of introducing yourself to a poet.)

ORLA Nov 2012

Sculpted

I want to carve your face into my tentative words,
Your forehead, your nose, your chin,
Gently slicing off an adverb here, an adjective there,
Running my fingers across the keys and across your profile,
Until it is perfect and my poem looks just like you.

ORLA Nov 2012

Conviction

My knees quake violently with the urge to run so far so fast no one will even see me pass
My chest constricts so that I can feel the shape of my heart and I realize it's in two pieces
My breath hitches in my choking throat because the sobs won't fit because they are too big . . .

I've finally come to the conclusion that the human body is simply too small to hold the soul
And that's why we die.