world, forget me
as i'm nothing special
a blank slate
with no motivation

i stay sedimentary
afraid to fail
how can i fly
if i wont take a leap

world, forget me
i have nothing to offer
nothing to share
just an empty shell

a passing character in someone's story
i'll never be the one they read for
my life is nothing but trials
all which i've failed

world, forget me
please i beg you
don't waste your time
trying to see me as who i was meant to be

The front gate is open.
You needn’t even knock.
Everything you’re seeking is right here.
Walk through my city—
its streets cracked, its walls worn thin.

You ride in, asking “Are you okay?”
Your voice is warm, your intentions pure.
The city looks broken.
“I’m fine. I’ll fix it.”
But who am I kidding?
I’m not fine.
My inner sanctum is leveled,
my heart crushed,
my life force drained.

You nod as though reassured,
admiring the scaffolding and fresh paint.
“You’re strong,” you say,
then gallop off to your next quest.
But you didn’t stay long enough
to notice the rubble behind the walls.

Don’t just stop at “I’m okay.”
Because I’m not.
I can’t share the crumbling walls behind the fresh paint
I don’t know how.
But I do need help.

You saw the scaffolding and thought it was enough.
You didn’t see the cracks spreading beneath.
You didn’t see how the darkness still presides,
smothering the streets,
hiding in the corners of my heart.

I’m getting worse,
Even if I look like I'm healing.
This darkness must be dispelled,
But you’ve already ridden away,
Your banner bright against the sky.

Of course,
you meant well.
But you never looked deep enough to see.

don't touch me, for i might crack
don't hit me, for i might break
don't yell at me, for i will shatter

these glass walls hold my porcelain soul,
but cannot protect me from the world
the pain, the love, the hurt—

paint my face the way it should be
a smile and bright red cheeks
i am yours to design

The strongest people are often the quietest,
Their shoulders broad enough to bear the weight of the world.
They listen when others crumble,
Piecing together broken hearts with steady hands.
Their words soothe,
Their presence steadies,
And their silence feels like a refuge.

But when their own walls begin to crack,
When the weight they carry grows too heavy,
Their voices falter.
Soft cries for help,
Eclipsed by the noise of lives they once held together.
Their pain fades into the background,
A whisper swallowed by the chaos of others.

They are seen as unshakable,
An unyielding constant in a storm.
But even the tallest trees sway,
Even the strongest pillars crack under strain.

Still, they stand,
Hoping someone will notice the way they lean,
Hoping someone will hear the faint echoes of their ache.
But most days,
Their own needs dissolve into the shadows,
Invisible in the light they give to others.

And in the stillness of their loneliness,
They wonder if anyone will ever listen
The way they have listened all along.

I squeezed your hand,
Once to show I was pleasantly surprised,
After all it's been how long since I've felt this feeling?

I squeezed it twice,
To let you know I love you with a passion I've never known before,
But I don't think you picked up on it.

My therapist called today.
My appointment has been canceled.
My first thought? “Ironic.”
My luck has been **** lately.
My limits, tested.
My self esteem, drained.
My trauma, denied.
My thoughts wander — to a dream I had once — during my “service.”

I wake up in my squad bay, alone drenched in sweat
I hear a woman wailing from the bathroom
I run in — there’s blood, over flowing from the faucet, shattered glass blankets the floor
I look into the broken mirror, and see nothing reflected back

                                                           ­ ---
                                             On a swampy night
                                       the woman inside me cries.
                                          —Part of me has died.

                                                            ---­

Today, a years-long claim got denied — again.
I have been fighting the veterans affairs office
for too much of my life.
Sitting here at a job that brings me nothing, I silently weep
inside about the battle that I have to continue fighting.
At my work bench, surrounded by strangers to my struggles
I’m transported back to my first encounter
with the hellish reality of life in the Marines.
His cries for help rip me out of my bunk.
With his arms locked, under the boys armpits and across his chest,
he drags him out from the squad bay bathroom.
We’ve been in basic training only two weeks now.
Fresh out of high school,
our friends haven’t even left for college yet.
Blood sprays from his neck.
He’s laid on the ground, and my hands, like bandages,
are around him now trying to keep his life inside of him.
I never knew how hot freshly spilled blood was.
I close my eyes, and pray someone will come save him
and me.
I was only 18
and so was he.

                                        Hands, covered in life
                              It’s lost warmth — searing my skin
                                        Save me from this hell

Because I know
I will never be more
Than second place, will never go
Further than them in your heart for
Every time I try to reach out
You do an about
Turn, face your back to me
And all I can see
Is this huge wall
Immune to arrows, bullets, fire
And so every time I try I fall,
My body
Parallel to the bricks
And ground
And around
Me
Is nothing but the faces of the friends I
Know you've made in my
Absence but I really
Didn't think it would be
This quick.