The candy shared in days of youth
Has melted in our mouths,
And left a taste so bittersweet
It lingers on the tongue.

But with each year that sweetness fades,
And bitterness we chew,
Then swallow down like sugared stones
We wish to taste anew.

A shower empowers sick flowers in bed
six hours will sour the flowers instead
they wilt and they weep at the hours ahead
as the silt where they sleep devours the dead.

the wet heat dragged out time until it was no longer time;
an unravelled spool of thread that I tried to rewind
with every forward step
despite their self-betraying jibes of pain.
sand whipped into my eyes
piercingly benign;
guiding out the latent strength that somehow still remained.
the wind halted.
the thread went slack within my hands.
i had found my horse, that faithful companion who, for all my life,
had borne the responsibility of my survival.
i found it dead.
the thread soon slipped from my fingers
and faded into the blackening sand.

He laid out some towels
She set a bucket right on top
The outside pitter patter
Echoed closely by drip drop
She plopped down on the couch and said
“I hate our leaky roof…”
He cozied up right next to her
“We’re newlyweds, it’s cute!”

The dog had left a pungent gift
Spread out across the floor
They tied cloth over their noses
Prepared to go to war
They scrubbed the ground on hands and knees
He, unusually mute
She poked his side with smiling eyes
“We’re newlyweds, it’s cute!”

Baby two cried till blue
Every other hour
And baby one learned to run
Too young for such a power
People seemed to judge and stare
Her cheeks turned rosy red
He raised his voice, ignoring glares
“It’s cute! We’re newlyweds!”

She zipped up the dress
He escorted down the aisle
And gave away his baby girl
His heart in full denial
The newfound silence of their home
Was echoed in his head
She played their own first dance song
“It’s cute, we’re newlyweds”

Years spilled by, the kids had kids
Less heed was paid to clocks
Days now passed in reading chairs
With simple meals and long walks
They shuffled down the sidewalk
At a careful, measured pace
Their scooting right in sync,
A peculiar kind of grace
She paused to rub her fingers
His hands were also wrung
She raised her deep-set eyes to his
“Do you ever miss when we were young?”

His wrinkles seemed to lengthen
As a gleam came to his eye
His mind replaying memories
Of leaky roofs and a youthful bride
Then he looked at the woman beside him
Sore with the weight of life
And for a moment he stayed silent
Overwhelmed by his beautiful wife...

“I don’t miss when we were young
Though time has worn us down
The love I had for you back then
Cannot compare to now
I’ll brave a thousand achey bones
Just to take slow walks with you.
Besides,” he took her hand in his
“We’re newlyweds, it’s cute.”

The passage of time flows oddly
It has twists and loops
and holes and leaps.
It has tolls and bridges
and it may even have a cheshire cat
waiting to guide.

Which path have you taken to get where you are?
You can only tell when you reminisce

You can only share with others if:
it has been documented
it has been recorded
it has been photographed
they were there with you

Time of to set the next chapter ablaze
What's lined up?
Who knows
But one thing is for sure

Soon enough,
you'll be warped into another time freeze
another time to reminisce
another trip down the rabbit hole

Душа черствеет на ветру,
Душа черствеет от страданий.
Увы, под бременем судьбы
Мы строим жизни нашей зданье.

Не будешь вечно молодым,
Не будет вечного веселья.
Слеза катилась по щеке…
Как после тяжкого похмелья.

Всё понимая — всех простишь,
То мудрость жизни расцветает.
И сам с собою говоришь,
И всё кого-то вспоминаешь…

Качались вётлы на ветру,
Шумел в душе осенний ветер.
Огонь рябины не согрел —
Пусть даже день осенний светел.

Всё понимая — всё грустишь,
Улыбкой память согревая.
В окно дождливое глядишь…
Ну почему же жизнь такая?

Свободной волей дорожишь
И делаешь свои ошибки…
А время кружит и спешит,
И ожиданий грёзы зыбки.

О, грусть моя, моя печаль,
В душе гнездо свила тихонько…
И всё кого-то просто жаль!
И всхлипы слышатся ребёнка…

Back in elementary school, they used to ask if we had telepathy.
If we could magically read each other’s thoughts,
and talk without words.

Our answer was always yes.
In reality, we both knew we couldn’t.
But back then,
we were still young enough to pretend magic existed.

So I’d face him, cross my fingers,
and pray we were still close enough to understand each other—
just this once.
As we got older, our answers started to differ.
I think that’s when I noticed we were slipping.

Another question they asked:
Could we feel each other’s pain?
He always told them he could feel when I got sick,
when I got my period,
when I was hurting in my head.

Me?
I couldn’t feel a thing.
Sometimes I barely noticed when he was hurting.
But God…
if I could’ve taken his pain into my own body,
I’d have done it ten times over.
And again.
And again.
And again.
Until the only pain he ever felt
was the cramping from my periods.

They asked if we were close.
I thought we were.
I think he did too.
Truth is,
he’s been the only person I’ve known since birth
who’s still here.

I held onto him tightly.
Too tightly, maybe.
I told him what to do—not to control him,
but because I was scared he’d drift.
Scared that if he found better friends,
I’d be replaceable.
Disposable.
Maybe I still am.
But all I know is I’m still here.
Because of him.

Someday, we’ll drift.
I know we will.
He’ll have a life, and so will I.
Someday I’ll flip through old photographs
when I’m wrinkled and slow,
and my grandchildren will ask about the boy next to me,
the one holding me so tightly my face is smooshed.
And I’ll tell them,
“That was my best friend.”

I’ll close my eyes,
and wish I was still young enough to believe
forever might exist.

When I sleep, I’ll be fourteen again.
You’ll still be there.
And that’s all I ever wanted.

In your own house,
you’ll hear birdsong outside your window.
And you’ll remember me—
because I always told you I’d haunt you in every life.
Even as a bird.

But in every universe,
I’ll be your sister.
And in each one,
I’ll hold you closer during the times I didn’t know how to.
I’ll tell you I love you,
so you never doubt I was there for you.

I hope someone loves growing old with you
as much as I loved growing up with you.