I create a giraffe
from a paper craft
green was its colour
“Nice dinosaur”, they said
hmmm…
should’ve chosen red
or tan tinted paper

So I flip in half,
squash fold to a calf
It’s simply done with ease
“Nice baboon”, they said
hmmm…
I change again instead
to an island and palm trees

with mountain and valley folds
we unfold what creation holds
and recreate a world from disaster
we make a judgment fold
from the view they hold
hmmm…
if only change is as simple as folding paper

Are you happy

I wish and I crave, I am only temporary
They say happiness is a season, is a band aid, is a
Small breeze not a winter's storm
I tell you it matters I feel that it does
But I don't even know what I want between us
I swear I'm not lying
I swear I want you
But.

There is always a but but never what follows
I come up short
There is empty where there should be reason,
Where there should be definitive knowledge
Wisps and smoke and empty thoughts that don't hold
Are you telling me to leave or are you telling me to settle
If I am a tree, if I settle my roots and crack through stone and I
Raise my arms up to the trembling sky
Am I crushing a mountain to hold myself aloft?
Do I deserve such opposition, such work to make us?
Is it right that you are stone, you are mountain and crushed beneath my razored toes?
If I tremble to the mighty mountain as I delve into its depths
Who is the giant and who is the ant

I ask you to change and morph
I ask you to be the dreams of a paper-bound girl
But my voice is a hum of electricity and crackles
And when I watch you and hiss
The only sound is that of your laugh, eyes trained on someone else
I ask and I ask inside and only that side
The out is too far for my thoughts to reach

Perhaps if you were rich soil and I a small sprout
You could grow richer and I taller
And no one is cracked and broken into pieces
No one is gnarled and no one is fading
We nourish each other and create a forest
And I never wish to crush you beneath my aching, exhausted toes.

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘺.
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘣.
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺,
𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺.

𝘕𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘴, 𝘐 𝘴𝘢𝘺.
𝘐 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺.
𝘚𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘥𝘢𝘺, 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵
𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥...

𝘛𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘐 𝘨𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥.
𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥, 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘐 𝘴𝘢𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺.
𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦.
𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘺...

𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦.
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦.
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘵'𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘐 𝘴𝘢𝘺, 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦. 𝘕𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘴.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙝𝙚𝙥𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙙 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙪𝙨.