At 2pm, last year breezed past me, out the door,
gracefully granting next year could plant her seeds
before sunset, steadily watered with liquid gold.
‘Hey Jude’ playing over the speakers
and I bless the drunken singers, warbling chorus
enough to cover for our quietness
as we stand there, feeling the corners of our lips
curl up in the sounds of silent serenade,
whilst tiny songwriters etch lyrics into our retinas,
signalling how these soft notes might look good on us.
Pain pitted me to the post, and in defeat
I drag these heavy limbs across the finish line.
Body battle-worn, at loss
with how to rise from this crumpled pile.
The devil’s flames lick my feet
yet here I lie, stone cold,
crowds hurling their hurt in oblivion
to the collected suffering we already carry on our collective shoulders.
But carry on, we do; and if I have to crawl
over shards of broken glass with a broken heart
I will get us through;
the world has good in her yet.
She promised me once, and I hold her to it,
joy wins the war in the end.
Surround us
with a crowd
of one hundred dancing strangers
ears ringing
from speakers announcing
that tonight
nothing matters
except
the way the corners of your eyes
curl upward towards the sun
when you smile,
and how
with the brush
of your hand against my waist
the rest of this place
could be nothing but particles.
In a multiverse
of alternate realities,
let this be the one.
You take all my flaws,
gather all my self-hatred,
and with your love
you welcome them home.
I never knew
there could be hope like this
where I will we’ll grow old together,
I never knew
there could be faith like this
that life blossoms whatever the weather,
I never knew
there could be desire like this
lust for command, I surrender,
I never knew
there could be joy like this
found in the effortless scent of your sweater.
All I need
is the sunshine
birds chirping
the flow of water
and something to love.
