Building Homes in Yous (poem)

I built homes in

tiny

twin-sized beds

extra-long to accommodate the

taller residents

built forts in their

bedroom blankets

comforters tried

to stoke the fires

of fluorescent light bulbs

turned dim in the

dark night roasted

ramen microwave

meals made with stained

sink water, filtered

but unfixed, I left

pieces of home behind

when I exchanged one broken

dorm door for

another.

Garden

I built you a garden inside

my heart

Tended it

every day

Planted seeds

watered

weeded

and loved

But the plants only grew

on my side of the garden.

I planted more

watered better

weeded more often

and loved harder

But the seedlings never

poked through

on your side of the garden.

Move-in Day

You placed your hands on my chest and pulled –

You didn’t have to try very hard.

My seams unraveled for you,

revealing the space inside.

You climbed in

– first your left boot,

then your right.

Tried to tiptoe but

stomped instead.

Wore down the floors

of my heart

and made me tender.

You hummed inside my annex

and it echoed in the emptiness.

You stepped out

left me hollow

but came back

with a

sofa

            desk

            refrigerator

            and bed

and arranged them within my chest.

Hung curtains on my ribcage

to keep the sun from shining in.

It’s been dark in there

and the light must come in

slow.

You pulled my seams back together

and they knit tighter than before,

hoping to keep you in.

Your clothes aren’t here yet

but maybe that takes

time.

Untitled Prose Poem 1

The bird bent her head to the small, flat dish and nibbled on a saltine. Beside it sat two pieces of celery which she chomped into small bites with her sharp beak and which fell from her mouth and cluttered the ground. Hunger clung to her ribs like a safety blanket, her narrow bones protruding at odd angles.

            Her mother landed beside her, offering her the full course she held in her talons.

            “Eat,” she said, but her daughter turned to the celery and continued her slow chomping. “Please,” her mother begged.

But instead the girl straightened from her meal and flew away.

When the Love Runs Out

When the love runs out
it will use the household vents
to escape

it will drift out with the heat
leaving you with the air conditioning
you so desired.