One

Your voice rang like golden chimes
when you sang your love to a
throng of strangers.  But
they didn't see how your heart
split and ripped inside your chest.
They mistook your tears for
sweat, your misery for art.

From the shadows of the wing,
I watched you die in minute
ways.  Behind your mask of fame,
I saw your grimace and the
ashen hue of your face.  Beneath
the shield of well-toned muscle,
I saw the blackened heart.

As you wept for her, I grieved
my own loss, knowing that she
was the one, and I am merely
one.  I left before you ended
the song, hating my one-ness,
while loving my one.

Chasing Fireflies

By the light of the moon
and the chime of the stars,
the cricket calls out to
you in my absence.
I left my voice in the
sunlight, like a child
abandons a plaything
in favor of chasing
fireflies.

With the patience of time,
I dance in the comfort
of darkness to the
cicadas' song while I
wait for you to join me.
The anticipation tastes
like honeysuckle syrup
and brings a smile to
my eyes.

When you arrive and we
dance together, our
eyes will tell the stories
our voices once knew.
And our hearts will
take flight as we leave
past worry in favor
of chasing fireflies.

One Way

There is only
One way to win
A stubborn heart
Like mine, a
Wilderness untamed.
There are no paths
Or smooth paved
Roads. Just the
Tangled brush
And uneven ground.
Surrounding the
Prize is a thicket
Of thorns. No
Machete can
Clear it; no fire
Will destroy it.
There is only
One way to win
A stubborn heart
Like mine.
Humility, confidence
And grace.