Captain, Your Ship Hasn’t Sank

I dream of you in bathtubs of flies, smoking opium

I dream of you laughing as you tell my dad how in love with me you are

I dreamed of you having a baby with her

You’ve always intrigued me with your mind, pulled me in like you were a portal

I’ve always jumped headfirst into my outlets to another world, and although I only ever dipped my toes in your dark water, I became swept up all too quickly as you went under with me

I can’t even say your hands pulled me in, we held our breath and went underneath together

From day one, from day one

I felt jealous seeing you with her, I felt like I knew you

I felt like I knew your secrets without you ever even telling me, I felt like you knew mine

You smoked cigarettes back to back with me, out in the dark – you procrastinated work more with me

We only talked once a week, but it felt like we had never left our spot, intertwined in intense interaction

I hated the idea of hurting her by having you

But what I wanted was to have you

It wasn’t like Tara. Though I’ll never tell you that. She hasn’t left me. Even as she’s so gone. Gone gone gone.

The pills seem to be helping or I’m just manic. Things are different now. I’m back home but it feels like I live with you part time. Dads sicker now. I feel everything he feels. I’m older but not old enough.

Time passed like a slow motion repeated punch to the face, and we’re battered

I see the loss of me continuously torture him, like he failed me, like he has to fight the war we’d never win – how do you fight the broken system? I tell him all I can do is be the change I want to see. Even as I still bleed in some ways. Some probably too much.

I place band aid after band aid on every gaping hole. I’ve put up wall after wall that I can’t even break them down completely when I try. Even as I feel like it comes naturally. I just won’t break. I guess that takes time. Will I ever be able to?

Tara saw everything. She saw me. I’ll never tell you how I still picture her. I’ll never tell how I carry her letter that I accidentally tye dyed while drunk like it’s a parting gift from my general at war. Who saved me. Carried me through as the bullets left me unable to carry myself.

I felt every knick and cut, I felt your hands having to dig in to get the remains out, I felt the alcohol burn my skin as you worked to cleanse everything.

I shook over you upon leaving. Upon entering the real world again. Mom was supposed to be there. I was cut off from everyone. She was there for a little while. Until she was gone again. But I saw that coming.

I bleed. And I bleed. And I’m bleeding laying here.

I can’t even fully write about him properly without it switching back over to you. Here’s where the narrative has to leave you. You’re not here anymore.

I feel horrible to say it as everything here is inherently good, his parents, him

But their internal ruins show through everywhere, like all of it blew chunks in every corner

I cough more from the dust

I have a questionable cut on my pinky toe from the shower, if that’s even what you could call it

He wants to make it better and I have hope that he will

Even as I watch him procrastinate, not reach his full potential

He wants to and I believe in him, but my fear is that this is all it’ll ever be – my fear is that time will matter, that this is potentially a severely vulnerable time for us

I had to go and I left, mom gave up on me before that

We haven’t talked and she’s taking whatever pieces of my heart she still has access to, and that’s them

What is it about us that seems to draw them too close for comfort, we were enjoying the evening, walking around his hometown

I see them unmistakably, they stop and stare for a moment

I couldn’t help myself, even as I enjoyed the little comforts of today even in the great discomfort of this house, I was falling into how pissed I feel, how overall hurt I feel.

He saw me angry. (I will refrain from bringing Tara back into this.)

I yelled to her to have a nice night, I yelled fuck you and he shushed me, he was right, I shouldn’t have done that

I called my aunt and cried to her instead

I rewatch the scene, “Not Penny’s Boat.” And I think of my dads words, “At the end of the day, I was the captain, and the ship sank.”

I don’t want to see you sink. Don’t sink on me.

Lighting

You still lighten up the rooms
Of my heart when you come near.
Even if yours are dark,
I wish you’d come inside mine
Because my church is filled
With your effervescent glow.

Everyone keeps asking the priest
To somehow stop the beaming
Sun from shining through.
But you are a cathedral’s glass panels,
You always burn bright and
With illuminating colors.

You always lighten up the hallway
Of my mind
Whenever you are near.
You are not my gospel
You are my prayer thanking
The universe for the
mystery of you and the warmth in
Your presence.

You help me believe in my
Own internal flame
And the raging wildfire
I can be
Deep inside the hidden passage
Ways of my heart.

Megaphone

I’m not important in your life.

It is time I am important in mine.

Here are the days I won’t take back,

Where my molecules become love notes

My tries becomes my vice and

Days of the inconsolable become days of gain.

Here come the hymns out of a new

Prayer book and the skipping stone hurled

Towards unprecedented dreams.

I do not matter to you but

I will become important in my world

Or there will be nothing left of me

To sing about.

i wish we could talk about it

dear g
I never really knew why we suddenly became so distant, it was probably to do with j. It really pains me that you let a boy get between us so suddenly, especially when you didn’t even talk to me about it. It was even worse when he was the one to message me about you two going out.
But I understand that it takes two people to make a friendship and two people to break one apart so I am sorry for not trying enough with you. I know I said I was fine with you two and I was at first. I don’t know whether it was because I though you guys wouldn’t last or because I didn’t realise my own feelings but now I keep on seeing you two, happy together so many months on so and I can’t help but feel sad. Don’t get me wrong I am happy for you two, it’s hard not to be, but I can’t help but feel a little jealous.
What’s more is that I have lost two friends. Before the possiblity of anything happening between me and j we were friends. I miss talking to him.
And there’s you, once I would have called you my best friend but now I feel almost kicked out of your life. Almost as if we didn’t belong in the same category as you anymore, you were too ‘cool’ for me.
I’m sorry that I can’t talk to you about this but I can’t help but feel so different from you. I really do wish you all the best in your future and whatever is to come, I know you will impact people in a brillant way.
love, z

You Just Felt Sorry

You came over yesterday. Saying you really wanted to see me because you missed me. I can’t help but think you’re doing it just because you left me hanging for 2 hrs the night before. You knew it bothered me. You were being extra attentive…I appreciate your efforts, really… But I cannot force you to really put me first.

I still love you… and will always put you first. I will also wait, hoping one day, I can be your number one.

You are the light that never goes out – I want to hold your hand

The truth is I was looking for something clever to write …
(just not very good at putting my thoughts out in the open)
The truth is I never stopped caring
(You are the fist and last on my mind)
The truth is I would still do anything to make you smile
(you could make me sing, dance, just about do anything)
The truth is –
I miss you!

I see love

Everywhere
Everywhere I see love
I sense it
I feel it
I recognise it
I see it in the light
I see it in the dark
And my heart aches
It aches at the want of it
Maybe I was loved too much as a child that all the love that my parents gave me took love from other facets of my life
My parents loved me and my siblings
I saw love between them
I see love between us
I see sacrifice of love
Everywhere
Everywhere I see love
I see love in the most precious moments that people share with each other
I see love in art
I see feel love in music
And my heart stops
It stops at the sight of love
It stops at sight of love between lovers
It stops at the sight of love between husband and wife
It stops at the sight of love between parent and child
It stops at the sight of love, compassion and an act of kindness shown by a stranger to another
It stops at the sight of an ocean, a beautiful sunset, mountains, the blue sky, the stars, the moon, trees and more
It stops at the sight of a magnificent art piece
It stops upon hearing music
For how magnificent is the being that created love and all these things
For this being must be born of love
It is LOVE
For me time stands wherever I see love
My heart stops
My eyes capture the moment
My mind stores it forever as a snipet of a movie that replays over and over again in my mind
To never be forgotten
To always be treasured even if it is not my memory to treasure
But I hold it in my minds eye
It reminds of the love I know exists within this world
It reminds that maybe just maybe there might still be hope for me
Everywhere
Everywhere
Everywhere there is love