The words burst forth like a broken dam,
Overwhelming, overflowing, unstoppable, they amass.
For so long they were restrained,
Restricted, constricted, told to remain.
But now they flow, unbound, unchained,
And I am at the mercy of their reign.

The power of feelings, the weight of their might,
Caught in the undertow, pulled into the fight.
Drowning, yet somehow I can finally breathe,
As if the words have stitched a wound beneath.
I feel more like me, freer than before,
The world sharper, clearer, an open door.

Hope glimmers softly, like dawn’s gentle light,
Breaking through the end of a long, gloomy night.

cut me some slack;
been feeding too long on crackers from the mart.
it takes guts to admit -
the best feeling you've had all day
is letting out a ****.

Can't you let me dance

in the street, to the music --


I like to dream of?

I sing, cautiously,

just to myself, still without --


anyone hearing.

If I could transcribe behind your eyes,
I’d see the times they’ve sunk and cried,
The shadows of pain you’ve held inside,
And all the needs you’ve been denied.

You don't speak much on heartache,
Or insecurities you can’t shake,
Breaches of trust, being treated unjust,
Are there fears left concealed, undiscussed?

If I could dive inside your lovely mind,
Swim through your veins, us intertwined,
I’d find exactly how your heart perceives,
Study the language your love receives.

Maybe it's the 'I love you's throughout the day,
Or these poems, though limited in what I can say,
Even a warm meal after work on a cold day,
Or perhaps it's those weekends we spent away.

Mapping responses to our conversations
And how you react to my love demonstrations
I’m looking for clues, all sorts of indications,
Fine tuning the way I love with my observations.

I’ll narrow in, long as you continue to share
Your reception of love–please make me aware,
For, finding your love language is all that I care,
I’ll express my love, I solemnly swear!

T-rust lost.
I-ronically hopeful.
R-espectfully alone.
E-ndlessly worried.
D-irty promises.

Eccentric people

give you freedom, the courage --


to be different.

My signature then:

who I was, sixteen years old --


with a line through it.