I will not leave you
When you are suffering
I will not leave you
When your heart is wrecked
I will not leave you
When you are gravely ill
I will not leave you
When you are devastated
When you are shattered
When you are on the brink
Of a permanent exit
I will never leave you
As human beings
I believe
We are here
To help
One another
Stay alive
Our future has always been
Unpredictable
Uncontrollable
Entirely out of our hands
Only nowadays
We are universally
Confronted by this
Unsettling reality
Every moment of every day
As we collectively
Wait to exhale
We are better served
To use our energy
To live in the now
For it is only
In this singular moment
We know what’s happening
Writers grab your pens
Painters clean your brushes
Performers warm up your voices
What there is to say
About all this
Does not exist yet
We need you to create it
I climbed to the mountain top
With a mask in my pocket
There was no one there
No one even near
Just my deepest breaths
My acquaintances
I took for granted
Back when we were free
I spot a distant hiker
Find my mask and tie it on
As I make the view
A silent promise
On some far away spring day
When this is all forgotten
I will be grateful
When it takes my breath away
Time for a role call
Worriers raise your hands up
Thank you for your careful plans
That rarely go astray
A sculptor of solutions
Your insomnia dreams up
In your unique thoughtfulness
Your stress betrays you
Always apologizing
For all your fretting
Dear warrior worriers
Here is what you may not know
Worry is not bad
It is only a symptom
Of the power of your heart
Dancing the fine line
Between I do not
Want to bother you
And are you okay
Why does the universal
Surreal shaky sadness
Feel impolite to address
There are no straps on these boots
We should kick them off
In our authentic
United uncertainty
We have no reason
Not to wear our weariness
Like a bronze medal
We deserve to be proud of
Emptying my purse
Sighing as I check pockets
Finding my chapstick
A peppermint and bus pass
Faded movie ticket stub
Three crumpled dollars
My prettiest pen
But alas what I’m seeking
Simply is not there
Here we go again
I cannot find my mask
Feeling the fatigue
That comes with days lived inside
Wrestling frustration
Because of a tiny thing
Barely there issues
Spark hard to handle anger
Unspoken apologies
Mingling in voices
Because we all feel
The ever present weight
Of not knowing what to do
In ten years from now
Come meet me at the movies
Searching for our seats
We will voice our certain doubts
That the film will skew the facts
Favoring romance
Sweeping music will distract
From real history
With our popcorn and soda
We will finally sit down
Ready for disappointment
No way will they get this right
Not how we lived it
The theater gets dark
2020 reads the screen
As we nearly roll our eyes
But as the big numbers fade
Together we are startled
By our brimming tears
Because we are holding hands
I hated parties
Sighing at invitations
Too crowded too loud
Yelling not talking
Was exhausting and boring
I would start planning
When to leave when I arrived
Two hours should do
Here in solitude
I imagine with great love
A loud long crowded party
I will one day throw
She and he were on the cusp
Of turning into an us
But not close enough
To manage six feet apart
Technology betrayed them
Love had not yet crystallized
There was not enough
To maintain or replicate
In solitary limbo
She was uncertain
Of how to miss him
In his silence he agreed
Possibility faded
As they disintegrated
Without an ending
Of what had not begun
From horribly wrong
To just a little bit off
Days are long and strange
But in our hiding
We are free of perfection
As our long required goal
Putting on our masks
We gently removed
The ones we never needed
Why not tell the truth
When all of us are losing
Someone we loved
Something we needed
Some semblance of us
At least we can raise
Our united hands
Sanitized and gloved
From the closest we have been
At six feet apart
On harsh winter days
Summer is a distant dream
But it is guaranteed
With a collective sigh of relief
We stroll in the sunshine
Embrace starlit breezy nights
Voice our gratitude daily
Without reminder or reason
We effortlessly thrive
In our vibrant togetherness
On these identical days
My mind will wander
In sad directions
Into the endless unknown
With one exception
Summer has not yet arrived
Of its perfect promise
I will not let go
I have wondered why
My most level headed friends
Are acting so strange
Scattered and confused
Relentless in their projects
Exhausted but wired
Smiling through sad tired eyes
Refusing defeat
Against internal battles
Such a mystery
But then one day it hit me
My cool and collected friends
Are unfamiliar
With intense anxiety
With no sign of letting up
It does not make sense
There is nothing they can do
They are always shook
I wish I could help
If only I knew how to
Suddenly old roles reversed
You cannot press pause on your heart
Try
An eternal inner war begins
You lose the spark that drives you
Inspires you
Makes you exactly who you are
Do not silence the messages
Your wiser than your mind
Heart
Delivers daily
Listen
Answers to questions you forgot to ask
Reverberate
To a beat
You need to keep your feet
Moving in the direction of the light
You were born to give the world
Out there somewhere
In our complex world
Someone has lived
A mirror of your pain
As you restlessly
Protect your heart
You shut relief out
Draw back the blinds
Seek the night stars
A testament to light
Softening darkness
Open your weary heart
Take a step outside
One step closer
To your someone
Praying to find you
Grief is a strange beast
Arriving without warning
Making your heart thunder
As memories flood in
Your heart overwhelmed
Aching for what once was
Part of you forever changed
From the exit of a sacred soul
Resist the urge to shut down
Honor your dear lost one
Live with your whole heart
Stay brave
The unforgiving limbo
Of waiting for a medical verdict
Will leave your mind spinning
A pile of what ifs snowballing
As you review worst case scenarios
In an attempt to stay grounded
Yet your restless heart has other plans
Leaving you scrolling at 3am
Reading through well wishes
Clinging to every word and emoji
You fade into sleep unsure of which is scarier
The answer
Or living through the waiting again
Tomorrow
Heartbroken
Devastated
Eternity faded
Eliminated
Too many words unstated
Internally berating procrastination
Scrambling for answers
Too many lost chances
Untrue indifference
Apathy disintegrating
When the clock strikes midnight
Whatever happiness is
This isn’t it
Nothing left to be fixed
Resigned
It’s fine
Fighting off tears
Haunted by fears
Ringing ears
Searching for a lost lifeline
Silently
Again
Dear Writers,
Is your favorite notebook the one you”1l never write in?
A gift a thoughtful friend gave you?
One you bought for the perfect cover?
The one you didn’t realize wasn’t lined?
Or is your favorite notebook that one you bought for $2.99 that you can never find?
It’s got the best stuff in it that you cannot recall precisely.
You wish you wrote it in your notes app or emailed it to yourself wisely.
Mental note to photograph your brilliant entry next time.
Or is your favorite notebook the one you don’t own yet?
Giving you a reason to browse around a bookstore.
Amidst all those books you plan to read, maybe you can find one that’s not too pretty and not too plain.
Seeking a little goldilocks.
Destined to contain your finest work.
It must be out there somewhere.
Your future favorite notebook.
Even if your steps are weary
Even if your heart feels empty
Even if your fear consumes you
March on
Hope will meet you on your way
Leading you across the bridge
Between the past and now
Relief will rise within you
Happiness awaits you
March on
Volumes could be written about what a friend is
Scrap the social media terminology debate
I feel it is this simple
You feel peace, calm, love, joy
Not only in their presence
Not only in your mind
Not only in your spirit
Life is just better with a friend
A real one
The world is brighter, kinder,
easier
Even in the dark
If they are as far away as heaven is
Don’t forget
They live on forever in your heart
Reaching for a number two pencil
Debating the question
Where to dare to start?
Consulting a fatigued heart
Contemplating a non-typical fascination
Erasing a messy confession
Pencil abandoned
Pen befriended
Write it like you mean it
Somebody said that
Sighing mid-sentence
Feeling mildly stifled
Ready to shred it
Deciding against it
It can be corrected
Make it great later
Take a nap and come back
Let a dream unjumble it
Invent a deadline
To ensure its completion
Before midnight
Right?
Write
When your brain activates after midnight, it’s decidedly inconvenient
Wrestling with it for an hour
Failing to fall into a dream
Accepting your restlessness
What now?
Revisit the beautiful story you shelved?
What was the logic for its abandonment again?
Too long and sprawling?
Write an abridged version
Less melancholy
Less complex
Lighten it up
Introduce a new viewpoint
Try to revive it
Not all in one night
Let it percolate in your dreams
You have to sleep eventually
Right?
Write
Always
You missed your entrance
I was too early with my exit
Nothing we can do to fix it
Can’t someone come to the rescue?
Repeat the missed cue?
As we look around for a solution
Met with nothing but shrugs
No one knows this section
Just the two of us
Before we simultaneously forgot it
Guess we better make it up
Two messy entrances
Invented dialogue lasting 10 seconds
Making my departure make sense
Creating a catalyst for your soliloquy
As I exit silently mouthing
“Who wrote this thing?
It’s impossible to follow.”
As you subtlety shake your head
“Not me.”
Reconsider your evaluation of the situation
What if it’s not what you thought?
Recover your original assessment
When your heart was in charge
Before self-doubt descended
Consumed by inner criticism
Dismissing praise
Swimming in the phrase
“Not good enough. “
Could you revisit it with fresh eyes?
What might you realize?
If you empathize with your past self?
Didn’t you love what you did at the time?
Get back to the beginning of when you were proud of every word
Why erase it over nothing in particular?
Just free floating fear
Remind yourself to remember
Even tremendous accolades fade
You are the only critic to concern yourself with
Celebrate your life’s work
You earned it
Give me the pen
I’ll rewrite the beginning
Make the ending the middle
Would that be so impossible?
I’ll be your reliable narrator
Stop rethinking it
There’s no magic in that
Maybe there’s no fixing what you missed
Who cares?
Start from wherever
Embrace the unwritten story you have no control over
Find the answers to the uncomfortable questions you decided to abandon
See what happens when you let someone else back in
What if that’s where the light is?
What if you dared to step into it?
What then?
Let’s find out
Take back the pen.
Your instincts would like a word with you
Do not shrug off that funny feeling
Tune into the murmuring background message
Whether to stay or go
Whether to trust or no
Often rests in your bones
Abandon the internal debate
Trust what you already know
The dawn will break
No matter how dark the night
Even if you have lost your grasp
To swirling thoughts and tears
Forgetting who can help or how
I ask you one motionless favor
Sit and wait for the morning
You love someone
You let them go
To honor their wishes
To rest your own soul
As days disappear
Your shared past fades
Each of your hearts
Undeniably changed
You make your peace
In an unspoken goodbye
Until the unexpected day
A force greater than two
Reunites you
Keep writing your way through the days
Put anything you need
Onto a page or screen
Send it out into the stratosphere
Without knowing where it will land
Let it exist somewhere
Other than inside you
Breathe new life into your past
Release it with gentle fervor
As it melts into a sea of words
You will find it releases you
To exist in a version of normalcy
Among the writers and artists
Attempting to articulate the intangible in unison
If you are a writer
Abandon the concept of a brand
You are a person
Who picked up a pen
When something inside you
Begged to be released
You do not have followers
You have people
Staring at a screen
Searching for words
For a feeling they cannot name
Write for them
Write what you are afraid to say
Because it’s a little too raw
A little too much of a rough draft
There is no such thing
Let go of your fear
Set your words free
A fragile soul out there needs you
Don’t hesitate
Just write and share
Words change lives
Here’s to the women with “strong personalities” for their determination and drive.
Here’s to the women who are “too emotional” for all the love they dare to share and fight for.
Here’s to the women who “only” care about their work or “only” care about their family who actually care deeply about both.
Here’s to the women who look “too perfect” for looking just the way they wish to.
Here’s to the women who “don’t care how they look” for looking just the way they wish to.
Here’s to the women who are who they are and do what they do because it needs to be done.
Here’s to the mothers, the sisters, the friends, the helpers,the healers, the fighters, the lovers, the superheroes of our time.
Here’s to us.
She made a fine art
Out of never talking
About herself
No one noticed
She stayed focused on them
How little they knew
They never realized
Until she vanished
Onto a new life chapter
Only she would write
Only she would read
In its entirety
The future doesn’t exist yet
No sense worrying
About something that does not exist
Sky high red heels
On rain covered bricks
Not the road she planned on
Still the road she had to walk
A light within sight
She walked toward the home
She thought she had lost
She wanted to run to it
Instead one click at a time
Her journey was ending
She could start again
In my pandemic daze
I wanted to stay in bed
Trying to dream
Sadness away
Numbers
On a bluebird
Would remind me
I had at least
Thirteen words
To get up to write
You prompted me
To turn on my light
You prompted me
To keep going
I wish I told you
I wish you knew
Thank you
