Bringing nothing to the table but my teeth
               Some dried nails, dull and storied
I release myself from the burden of want.

The course bark of calling,
The apotheosized commitment of feeble
Drunk love; the lie of life and
                       the emaciated chortle of purpose.

I no longer hunger in a mirror of porcelain.
The plated dinner party for which
        I was never invited, elbows against grain
        knowing everything I have ever loved

Has eaten me up. I swallow it all
         and call fullness to the table beside me like
my new hungry bride.

wishing on eyelashes again
i hope we can be more than friends
can you see the ink that fell out of my tattoo that’s how close i wanna be to you

your eyes are darker than i’ve ever seen them
and mine are just as glassy
whenever you decide you want me you can have me
if you wanna know you can always check
for your birth stone around my neck

i could fall asleep right now
but then i’d miss you standing between my legs
when you take my chair i tell myself
you just wanna look up at me instead

i think maybe you lost your charm
but then you come sit next to me on the couch’s arm
and i lay on your knee and dream of what we could be
i try to listen when you try to tell me

i have everything you could ever want or need
and i’d give it to you so you know it’s real
i’m a commie babe i want you to feel as good as i feel
you said “well i’m leaving” standing big and tall
to see if i’ll follow and i come at your call

and do you ever worry my bruises are from someone that’s not you

Some days are speechless, out of breath
some hide under blankets against snow

A box of ashes in the closet,
pile of feathers under the feeder

Somewhere outside of Nashville
over the hill musicians sing sad songs

There’s a playlist deep within my phone about you.
It isn’t actually that far away. A simple click and it
will pop up with a heart next to it and a picture of
you. Don’t worry, you agreed when I took that one 
when the wind was playing with your hair. I wish
I was the wind. Of course, I doubt you would ever
find it, but I used to put it on when I missed you.
When I remembered I didn’t see you every Monday
through Sunday. That playlist reminded me that you
were perfect; you still are. The beauty of your face
on my playlist allowed me to pretend you’re with me.
I could pretend the person who always listened and
gave the best advice was by my side. The one who
“loved” me. Within my playlist, when I got down on
one knee, you always said yes. But when I got down
on one knee two months ago, you insisted no and I
listened. I listened to the music and clicked away.

I sit at my desk

Twice as wide and half again as deep

            through wet clay 

                    each day past sixty

**going to Sundress for a week starting tomorrow, so I may choose to forego posting & reading. I’ll be writing poems, though! Happy week, all!

Bluebirds feed their young

Swallows menacing nearby

Storm clouds gathering

In the blackout 
we sat beside the dry swimming pool
and watched stars
together. 

We usually can’t see many stars here
(if we even think to look up at all;
it’s shameful how often we forget to look),
but tonight it’s late and quiet.
The life we’ve built behind us in
a darkened house.  

I can feel time move when you stop talking.

We will be old soon.  

A cup of copper wishes find I ‘pon my Sunday stoop;
quizically yet hastily I grab them in one scoop;
then hand you half a handful of the wishes I had found;
and while we walk, at corners, cast we wishes on the ground.

Between two pillars
the High Priestess sits
before a veil
decorated with pomegranates and palms.  

Behind the veil
is the vast sea
of the unconscious.  

She wears a lunar crown,
a crescent moon sits at her feet
and on her lap
a scroll
on which is written
Divine Law.  

She is the mediator
between humanity
and the Divine
Guardian of knowledge
master of intuition
keeper of mysteries
devoted servant
to higher powers
and an oracle
with a deep connection
to truth.  

But you need not seek her out
with your most urgent questions
and your most vexing problems    

Because the knowledge
of the High Priestess
is already
within you
you need only
lift
the veil.