We are
superficial beings
densely packed on the fringe
of histories in contact.

We’re torn apart
by discord from within
and rush together
when pressure rises from outside,

The balance of the two
along with our emphatic bonds
encapsulates our collective ego
defines how full we are
of ourselves.

Hands playing around
Skin touching abound
Craving for some connection
Hissing of secret conversations
Melting stares
More of this flare
Lingering of each other's perfume
Mimicking and smelling
Tension on the roll
Are you in?
Are we doing it?
Love just say it
Do you want me
Do you crave for me
Do you
Do it
You

XOXO

and your halo can be seen on november nights before the car starts
when our breath is cold in the air
and, for a moment,
your words can be seen instead of felt.

when i look out the window,
i see a streetlight.

You held back with so much tension,
every time you laid a finger upon my skin,
and I never realized how much
you must've been fighting
your compulsions
to break through me.

The arrow endures
The bow string's tension
So that in the release
It can become
More than itself

Contorted like a torsion spring;
Tense, like a drawn bow string,
Like hell hath no greater fury to bring.
Energy, begging to be released;
Bearing the brunt of the mortal coil,
As the shuffling forth proceeds.
Brought to steam, a kettle about to boil,
Like a frying pan with too much oil.

Unable to stand down,
A stand-off of an existence;
The tables have turned, now,
Listen to the resistance’s insistence.

I feel like I can’t unwind,
Like life can be a party,
But I always leave my buzz behind.
Trying to find a place to fit,
A niche, a nook for the carving;
A hook for a song, a stitch in time,
Anything to feed a hungry soul,
To save myself from starving.

I can’t relax, nor lose my focus;
Pleasure is not happiness,
What you crave is probably bogus.
Distractions mean running away from reality;
Contraptions and lies,
Falsehoods draped in formality.
They say the flame that burns twice as bright,
Burns twice as quickly;
The hands that are twice as sleight,
Become twice as tired,
Twice as fragile and sickly.

Alas, I know that one day, I will lose my tempering.
I will become frail and exhausted,
Like a wanderer who’s lost his bearings.
My knees will become weak,
My arms will become heavy.
Time and the vicissitudes of fate -
They’ll swing by to collect their levy.

Let that day come.
Until then,
I shall march to the beat of my own drum.

All I could feel was red,
from the trees
that had roared
like flaming manticores,
                                                     ­ to the sky
                                     who had bled
                                                      its final dawn..


The veins in my head cut sharp corners
through my temples,
trying to break free from the prison
of my mind.
Steam emits itself
from my ears.
The amber tea was ready.
Lava erupted
from my face
and through my head.
I felt it ooze
                                    through my eyes
                    through my ears
                   Even through the corners of my mouth.


My demons stayed dormant
no longer.
My fist shook holding them,
my mouth relentlessly
sewn shut..
I bottled them like genies
and stored them
in a cellar.
                                                         Hot-blooded merlot
              and Foam-at-the-mouth pinot.

FLASH

"the exposure looks kinda funny"
"maybe just adjust the aperture a bit"
"add in the lighting"
"is the white balance set?"

the chair squeaks as it moves to the left
the weight shifts the couch in their direction
heat radiates from the family
whose fake smiles are nearly as blinding as the flash from the camera
despite the tripod, the camera sits off kilter
like the uneasy tension in the room
it feels hot--no, sweltering
unsettled emotions sit like
discarded mail
away and out of sight

CLICK

"Okay, we're good"

and the family heads off in their separate ways
with no goodbyes for the others