Pill

I can put away the pill;
I haven’t put away my pain;
But sleep is lured to me,
As fatigue strives again.
The draining of the heart
Is a gruelling process –
a rigmarole of feeling
That affords no recess.
Four words from someone
Can tear you down;
Four words can also freely
Send in the clowns.
I want to try and see
If I can earn some sleep
Without its torturing –
Or its rest being deep.
If I can be let go,
Despite love and living,
It’s time to take heed
And start a self forgiving.

Alone Again

I went for a walk.
(I struck out “with you”)
You walked ahead,
In silence.
A stranger maintaining social distancing.
I walked behind you.

The silence lasted
The entire walk.
20 minutes.
It felt like each time
You left me alone –
Outside dressing rooms,
In parties,
In your family.

It exacerbated
All recent loss
All of my grief.

But I counted on you
For relief.

Instead,
You took me into the past.
And reminded me
Of who you were,
Who I was,
Before I became.

Now,
Again,
I forget my name.

I wonder if this is how
Love makes all pain last,
As this walk took me farther from my future,
Into an apathetic past.

They Tell Me

They tell me, I’m older than you,
You’ll be quick to start life anew.
(Am I that easy to forget?
Don’t you have an ounce of regret?)

They say, you’ll find somebody soon;
You’ll give him the same sun and moon,
You gave to me when we first met…
(Will this darkness be all I get?)

Don’t you think of how I held you,
Of my heart lying beside you?
Isn’t there some love left in you yet
That makes me harder to forget?