There once was a man who wrote poetry
Which alas was not read that widely.
Until, that is, he passed away
And became the talk of the day;
Lauded, albeit posthumously!

our time comes when the night falls down
as the midnight turns into a quarter to one
you'll wait until i came down
and i'll see your smile as i couldn't hide mine
the thrill starts with the ride
take me behind you on your bike
you swift me through the cold night
the rush that seeps through me
as i clutch tight to your waist
lead me to our secret place
it was the perfect hideout
under the stars and the moon peeking through the clouds
our first kiss and you covered your shy face
moments passed by and a love was made
look me in the eye one more time
as i kept getting pulled away by your tide
drown me in your love and lust
bury me under your skin
surround me with your scent
brush your cheeks against my face
no matter what I still see you in my dreams
the night will never stop haunting me
i'll never escape from your tide
i can never get away from you
you're my suicide ocean
i'll bring you to my death

what do you do? you keep going. you have to, right? you can’t stop. you just can’t. life itself was created to keep going. it’s in your bones to keep going. there’s a future out there for you - songs waiting to be listened to, words begging to be spoken, beautiful things that demand to be photographed, to be sketched by you, and only you. there are waterfalls out there that exist only for you to jump off of cliffs and into them. there are albums with your name as the songs. and if you truly believe it would not matter if you stayed alive or not, i cannot sit here and convince you that it does matter. i don't have that power. here’s the thing, though - you do. you can find your purpose. i swear to god it’s out there.

I’m not sure you know what it’s like to love
someone you know is only going to demolish you.
What it’s like to give your body to someone
who doesn’t care what it would look like
turned inside out, the beauty of it
dripping from your bones, the words that haunt
you when the lights go out, the dreams you swore
to catch but just nearly missed.
I’m not sure you know what it’s like to watch
for the expiration date, wait for
that last good day before the question
is asked, the “where is this going?”
the self-promises not to reach out to him
days after you’ve gotten the wrong answer.
I’m not sure you know what it’s like to prepare
bomb shelters out of empty Ben & Jerry’s,
your roommate’s wine, your favorite leggings
and a blank document. I don’t think you know
what it’s like to play tag with each other’s tongues
in your bed while you just wait
for it to be empty again.

I love all the things you do,
all the stupid little hair flips and the smiling
between kisses, how you cradle my face like you just know
you’re going to tear my smile apart one day,
but you don’t get it.

You don’t know what it’s like to be the girl
everyone breaks. To have to watch days
on your calendar pass by while crossing your fingers
that today isn’t the day he grows tired of your jokes,
the day he finds the sparkle has faded, the day
the disinterest starts. You don’t know
what it’s like to hold someone you know isn’t ever
going to be yours.

Look at me
Look at me
I'm scared into flames
And I feel there ought to be a joke round here
Somewhere
Hold onto me
Hold onto me
I'm flying into space
And I can't find anything that matters here
Nothing really matters

Flying high
Flying way too high
With nothing to hold onto
And needing nothing at all
Because everything is possible
So, let my wings glisten in the sun
For tomorrow I crash hard into the ground


                                           By Phil Roberts