unexpected turbulence

sometimes
I’m not sure
whether you’re
the heavy winds
or the eye
of my hurricane

swallowed up

doubts run through me
like little cracks

any minute
they could split wide

Storms

               You have your
own atmosphere. Dark
clouds swirl within it.
Lightning crackles too
close to your skin.

               Sometimes the
sparks burn me.

after dark

my body morphs with my bed
it is all I have left to hold on to
my mind falls
                          through
                                          nothing

trapped

within the medal
they gave him
were the ghosts
of a hundred men
who deserved it more

antiscenery

she looked out the car window
and watched the world pass by
beyond her reflection

and... him vii.

on the mornings
when we met
at the coffee shop
I didn’t come
for the caffeine
only the company

egotism

do you ever think
that maybe the roses
are taking time
out of their day
to let you smell them?

messenger

a shiver crawls up my back,
whispering your coming
to each of my vertebrae.

they brace themselves
to keep me from melting.

and... her vi.

during that week
when you were sick
I told you that
I’d already had
the chicken pox
but afterward
I went straight
to the doctor

striking back

the waves crashed against the rocks
the waves crashed against the rocks
the waves crashed against the rocks

          the rocks crashed against the waves
          and the waves flew to p i e c e s

and... him vi.

on our first Easter
when I hid
and you found
the eggs that
spelled out
I LOVE YOU
those eggs had been
ready in my fridge
for two weeks

aftereffects

he spent all his time wondering
if every breath he took
once carried the vibration of her voice
which molecules of oxygen
once graced her lungs, brushed across her lips
if the sweet taste in his mouth
contained particles of her last exhalation of hope

fresh start

she hired a divorce lawyer
and kicked out that person
she didn’t want to be

Pompeii

her blood burned through her veins
hidden beneath her skin and her smile
pressure building as her heart screamed
her bones bowing under the weight...

and
     they
          had
               no
                    idea

almost I love you

          Those words I keep meaning to say
          are tattooed on the inside of my lip.
          Every time I talk, they almost tip over
          the edge into the open air, just hanging on
          by the skin of my teeth. I tuck them back
          with the tip of my tongue and a swallow.
          Their heavy ridges scrape against my gums.

Sympathies of a Dandelion

She sits on the front steps,
staring at the dandelion
in the yard, wondering
what it’s seen,
how much it knows.

The         wind      blows
     away             its           p e t a l s.

Are these tears for her?

fall by grace

she lay down in the sky,
spread her limbs to
make star angels

they flew away,
leaving her
to fall

teenage now

sitting around a table
with five spoons
and two tubs of gelato,
laughing at fellatio puns                       [that’s what she said]
and other jokes
we won’t remember tomorrow,          [or even an hour from now]
          solids in an already-liquid
               almost-memory

and... her v.

at junior homecoming
when we danced
for the first time
I wouldn’t
meet your eyes
because I knew if I did
I wouldn’t be able
to resist
pressing my lips
to yours