Venusian Clouds

With our last kiss goodbye

I saw myself reflected in his eyes as

We promised to meet in our dreams.

Now,

He sings to me

While removing a mask

That purges toxic beliefs

And stale contracts

He dances with me

Overjoyed in his body and

Unafraid to bare his heart with

His generous smile close to mine

We rest together

I pull from my suitcase an incandescent sphere

Swirling with Venusian clouds, expanding

While I nestle in his protective arms

We talk on the phone

I say, “come to me, I’m on a floating, lush mountain surrounded by stars”

I think he will have to book a flight, but

He hurls a rope and begins to climb

Assisted by an angel who agrees

Our last kiss would not be goodbye.

Longing

You blamed yourself

Your sweet, soft

Essence

For your suffering

Rather than those who mishandled you

So you banished it

Deep within defensive shadows

Locked behind a fear-proof door

Unknowingly

Caging currents of your

Lifeforce

Settling you into sticky

Half-truths and

Deluded satisficing but

I knew you before the disunion

So when you pulled me close

I recognized your radiance

Reaching to me through the cracks

Longing to be released

And held

In my sweet, soft

Safety

Thousands of Petals

Delicate pink blossoms float

With creek bubbles

Passing beneath a stone arch bridge

Like fairies

Grazing between willow’s soft fingers

Lily pads and lotus flowers catch them downstream

I sit on the grass amongst thousands of petals

Holding open a book I’m meaning to read

Words on the page call to me gently

But all I can think of

Is you

Sing

Covered in thick metallic plates

A shield against feeling

Anything —

Not even the persistent howl

For agency

For desires you decided had to die —

Knowing that cry within myself

I sensed it

Or maybe I saw it in an amulet

When I brought you to natural, warm waters

Sheltered between lilacs and willows

We submerged our bodies in the crystal reverie

And I called that voice forward

Breathing life into dormant dreams

Now,

Will you put down your arms

And listen to him sing?

Union Divine

At the end of fall, I sit burned and jagged, hot and dry

Remnants of my life scattered upon me

Monuments of destruction

And you find me like this when you arrive as clouds that cover

Shielding my skin from the sun’s burning rays

Until you are mist, preparing me

To accept you as rain

Mixing with my ashes, creating fertile compost

Forming puddles under rocks and cleansing my pain

Softening the shells of my long-dormant seeds

You return as snow

Blanketing me with your cool, soothing balm

Held and holding, gently protecting my wounds

Layer by layer, inch by inch

And in perfect timing, you melt away

Caressing me, pouring into my veins

Saturating my sediment and filling my aquifers

The seeds that sprout in our entwined elements

Grow upon me, out of my ashes, in the warmth of your love