“Sticks and stones …” the familiar saying goes
but words hurled in anger
are as sharp as a needle or sword:
the pen is mightier
and can cut to the core.

So, choose the words you write with care
as the wounds from your words
can fester and scar.

Instead,
use your words to praise,
to console,
to declare your love,
for those words
are the most powerful
and feed the soul.

I take good advice
Even if I don't like the source,
Because I trust in knowledge
And in the pursuit of more.
I think for myself,
Because I cannot allow others to;
Evidently, not many do.
I place my respect, like I place my trust-
As to how I pay-
When it has been earned.

Trust in the earth
And the grass
And the dirt
And the trees
Trust in lakes
And the land
And the air that you breath
Trust your mind
And the heart
And the brain
And the pain
Trust in time
And the space
And the life
And the flame
Trust in success
And in failure
And in loss
And in gain
Trust in experience
And what made you
Who you are today
Trust in trust
And in truth
And in good
And in right
Don’t ever mistrust
That you’re wrong
In your fight
Trust your words
And your thoughts
And your prayers
And your faith
Trust in math
And consequence
And in science
And in fate
Be who you are
And trust that you will
Be who you are
Until you are filled
With love
And with life
And with joy
Oh it’s great
Be who you are
Till you meet the wraith

I am afraid of living, she said.
I am afraid it will hurt me.

Good, he said.
It will.
The world is frightening.
You should be frightened, he said.
The world will hurt you, and it will be worth it.

I'm afraid I will deserve it, she said.
And I'm afraid, she said, that I won't.

Nonsense, he said.
Utterly.

The world will hurt you.
People will hurt you, he said.
And when they do it,
They will do it because they will.

Is that all? she said.

No, he said.
That's everything.
That's all of it, he said.

The world will hurt you.
And the world will love you, he said.
People will love you, he said.
And when they do it,
They will do it because they will.

You have not earned this.
You have not deserved this.
This is living, he said.

How do I stop it? she said.

You don't, he said

You live afraid.
And you live desperate.
And you live happy.
And you live.

I am afraid of that, she said.

I know, he said
You should be.

An empty hand will keep on searching,
a full hand is satisfied with what appears enough
The heart pleasantly echoes an expression of love,
but it’s a blinding siren, without putting the mind to it.

The eye is the most jealous body part,
the mouth an unkind blade of a man’s great envy
The ill of man, is quickly giving a judging
depth between their sins and others;
As according to us; the next person is the greater sinner.

Your faith wasn’t a quick given,
as you learnt how to cherish it firstly, as a beginner
How you live, comes from the ways you choose to adopt,
some do start out strong, faithful, loving caring and humble,
But throw in pieces of fortune into the combination, and
their morals are bought out and lost.

Your greatest mistake is what isn’t done yesterday,
and the longest regret isn’t doing it at all
Drunkards can drink together, laugh fight, &
drink together again; yet a sobered heart, will hold
onto unforgiveness until death.

Finally and true, a childish person,
still chases after their old youth
As a child forced to grow up quickly,
despises their own youth
As you’d find bliss in a lie of your own desire,
and would be disgusted by what is spoken in Truth.

Don't watch the clouds;
watch the sky.
I give this advice
to myself.

i fall asleep in the back of ubers, to the sounds
of middle-aged drivers talking to their loved ones
giving advice, the smell of spice, my temple on the window
just playing a mental jeopardy with the meanings behind
those accented words of languages i don't understand
perhaps, once upon a time, i did, but now, no longer

i sleep like a stranger in my own home, climbing
into my bed without caution, with atrophying bones
it's a debilitating exhaustion, it's characteristic of aging
of falling and forgetting about the friendships and benefits
that broke through my bed slats, plus the flash-lit attempts
to fix the unfixable with feminist texts and crumpled cash

i dream about my mother as another, and her neck
remains untouched, perhaps only adorned with pearls
so wide, and so bright, and the garage door is always unlocked
it's comfort, it's nostalgia, it's the furthest i've been from home
and when the radio turns on, i wake to unfamiliar laughter, and
"i miss my dog, and i miss falling in love," and everything's amiss
and all i can do is sit here, tipping a stranger as i reminisce

Feel fossils
Prioritize dinosaurs like a paleontologist
Aim like an ambitious mountaineer
Explore mountains
Try to touch your dreams
Ignore glochids
Notice the patterns of cacti

Keep in mind
since we are human beings
the superego will be the winner
good things will defeat bad things
sooner or later