Old Fires

When the smoke trails end,
And the coals don't glow;
When the heat's long gone,
And ash is all that remains;
Old fires can be rekindled
To burn brightly once again.

When the scent has left the air
And the wood has been burned black;
Add but a little paper and heat;
Though ash is all that remains,
Old fires can be rekindled
To burn brightly once again.

Whether fire of passion,
Of love, of hate,
Or the fire of rage,
Of envy, of loyalty;
When ash is all that remains,
Old fires can be rekindled
To burn brightly once again.

Kid

Look in the mirror, kid.
You're sixteen, not five.
How can you be so stupid
When you're old enough to drive?
Listen to yourself, kid.
You're sixteen, not two.
Yet you're throwing a tantrum,
And I'm losing respect for you.
Look at yourself, kid.
You're sixteen, not four.
You're struggling so hard,
Yet you're claiming that you're bored.
Hear your own words, kid.
You're sixteen, not one.
Your brain needs to grow up
Because your body's almost done.
Look in the mirror, kid.
You're sixteen, not three.
How could you be so clueless?
Act your age or get away from me.

Homecoming

My fingers grasp
At what they knew so long ago,
Familiar, groping, remembering,
Touching the curves, edges,
Corners, patterns of times long past.
My weary body hits the sheets,
My scent long fled, like a breath,
But it returns with glee,
Dancing around my body,
Licking at my face and hands,
Eager to welcome me.
It sits deep in the nest I left,
Twisted blankets, stacked pillows,
Infested by the crumbs of snacks,
Stolen in the night long ago.
My room remembers me.
It welcomes me home;
It has waited so patiently for me.
Sweet nostalgia.
The closet door creeps open,
Just as it did when I was young.
Now, the fear is gone,
But I push it closed from habit.
The sound of the highway
Through the canyon
Seems loud, and I wonder
How I ever slept with such thunder.
But it is familiar, soothing, gentle.
The imprint of my body
Left the mattress long ago,
But now it returns, grudgingly,
But welcoming.
Welcoming me back to my nest
That I left too long ago.

Blanket of Darkness

Sweet, gentle,
Blanket of darkness
Cover me.
With tender touch
Hold me close,
Safe from what I can't see.

Human Existence

The human existence:
Painfully short,
Agonizingly long.
Consciousness a fleeting memory,
Existing but a moment,
Fading in a lifetime.
The human existence:
Bloody violence,
Tender compassion.
Breath merely a second,
A life an hour,
Time claiming all.

While

Hold me while I bleed out,
Sing to me as I fade away.
Love me while I fight my doubts,
Catch me as I tumble down.

Hold me while I bleed out,
Clutch me as I'm slipping.
Kiss me while I'm crying,
Hold me as I'm dying.

What is a Best Friend?

Best Friends are the ones
Who encourage you to let loose
And make you sober up later.
They're the ones who
Make you happiest,
Make you saddest,
Make you angriest.
Best Friends are the ones
Who give you a reality check.
And still support your dreams.
You trust them with your life
But not with your food.
When you fall,
They catch you
Or help you up,
But only after they're done laughing.
Best Friends are the ones
Who can hurt you the most
But who love you the strongest.
They can piss you off--
They can cool you down--
Faster than anyone else.
They make you go places,
Try things, meet people, and do stuff
That you don't like or don't want.
Best Friends are as close as blood.
They're the ones you can rely on
At the same time they rely on you.
Best Friends sometimes slip up,
But at the end of the day,
All they really do is love you with all their heart.
That is a Best Friend.

One of Those People

I am "one of those people,"
The ones who need to be reminded,
Every day, how much you love them.
The ones who panic over everything,
And need to be reassured constantly
And kindly.
I am "one of those people,"
The ones who say things they regret
When they are angry or sad.
The ones who crave acceptance
And closeness, but get hurt easily.
I am "one of those people,"
Who's loyal to a fault
But lashes out when hurt.
One who suffers from anxiety
And just wants to be happy
And wanted and loved.
I am "one of those people."

Faded Memories

Seconds tick,
Minutes march on,
Hours pass,
Days slide by,
Months and years slip away,
Far behind, taking fading memories
With them in the slipstream of time.