pay attention, they tell me, pay attention to the things you hear
like the birds singing, or coffee shop chatter, or crying 
and if I pay attention, they tell me, I’ll contain multitudes

multitudes of words drown me like the rising tide and
I can’t keep my head above water so the words are swallowed
and then they lift me buoyantly back to life 

there they go, floating along the waves, the words 
are boats that steer themselves and I just have to 
pay attention as they pass as if writing poetry were that easy

pay attention, they tell me… Read the rest

“I’ll love you forever.”

“Well, I think forever is a bit too long,” she said, peeling a patch of his greenish skin off his shoulder as they talked.

“But I can be with you forever,” he said.

She touched his face and then grimaced when more skin fell away at her touch, he was rotting right before her eyes.

“I don’t think you’re going to be here much longer, babe,” she said.

“It doesn’t matter what I look like, does it?”

“Well, not so much, but you need to be all in one piece.”

“I think I lost a piece.”… Read the rest

“We don’t have enough to form a coven,” the old witch snarled.

“We will, look, she’s right over there.”

“You mean to take some girl enjoying her day in the park and bring her over to us?”

“What choice do we have? We’ll grab her and drag her into the woods, it would take seconds.”

“But someone might see us!”

“We have a demon to conjure! Now, do as I say and go get that girl!”

The old witch dashed into the field and dragged back the girl.

“I put a hush spell on her.”

“Smartest thing you’ve done today.”… Read the rest

There she stood in her white dress with her father on her arm, a beautiful bouquet of flowers in her hands.

It was her wedding day, the day she had spent her whole life waiting for, and now the time had finally come.

All of the planning, all of the anticipation, the wait was finally over and she was a bride, and about to be a wife.

She was about to be this man’s wife.

The doors opened, the music played, and she walked forward, but no one in the room stood and all was quiet.

He hadn’t shown up.… Read the rest

We have had enough of these goodbyes.

Remember when they were tearful, but full of love, hugs, kisses, the kind of goodbyes you don’t want to suffer through?

Maybe I liked those better than the quiet quitting of our relationship, the way you just backed out like you didn’t feel like going to the game.

A game is all I’ve ever felt like, a person being played, a pawn in someone else’s life.

She doesn’t fit here, go there.

No, that’s not right, either, move here.

Until I’m knocked off the board, and you’re picking up the pieces and leaving.… Read the rest