Poem: Our warm bedroom

Last night I had a poem stuck in my head
And I did nothing about it as I lay in my bed
It was about the golden days in Chicago ,
When we lived in that small apartment
And we were so happy.

I was tossing and turning
Trying to get it out of my mind
And all of those words I came up with, I soon left behind
I chose not to write about those wonderful days
That I romanticize, just a little
You have to romanticize everything
Just a little
That’s how you go on living

Someday I’ll go mad because I won’t remember
How cold it was when we moved in on September
How much joy I got from the fire escape
As it looked upon the downtown, so far away
You could hardly catch a glimpse
But with my cigarette lit
I was in heaven.

I was in pure heaven.

Poem: Swimming pools

Butterflies
In your swimming pool
I’m writing in my notebook
About feathers and freedom
What we used to think being an American meant
About global dreams
Obscure visions
Broken televisions
Why don't you ever compliment me?

I smile when you smile
You,
On the diving board
Laying there like a dead squid
Makes me giggle
Just a little
I’m playful in your arms
No entanglements
We are one of a kind
We talk about it
Like we’re in middle school
Like we’re too cool to be cool

It’s cold, but we pretend it’s summer
Spend Tuesdays by the swimming pool
Catching the sun’s rays
Wondering when we’ll be saying goodbye

At my expense

My imagination takes me to dark places in the world
I’m too stubborn to run away
And I know nobody will come with me
I rid of all my expectations

You said love and beauty cannot coexist with analysis
But you don’t know the things I think of you
When you swim laps and I admire you
Luxury like a dripping rose
God can’t help me

I put your Cubs cap back on
And search for defects in you
Because it cannot be true
I’m banging my head, I’m so sick of you
I like you

Secrecy and solitude
Come kiss me in the closet
Try on your best white button-down
You teach me how to tie a tie
I keep getting it wrong because I’m weak

Saturdays with you
Watching how much your cat adores you
She’s practically floored by you
There must be something about you
I look away

I know it’s irrational
For me to open myself up to love again

So I keep practicing how to tie a tie
So one day I can kiss you goodbye

A.

I shouldn’t have told you my secret
A story that was just for me
I regretted it right after
But you looked so cute on the daybed
I had to have you again
I had to

I put Christmas lights up around my room
I feel like a little kid again
But the worries still trouble me
The thoughts still bother me
How do I manage to stand in front of you and act like the most important thing for me is the fact that I un-quit smoking

There are certain comments I made
That I now regret
I can’t tell if I’m making a big deal
I want your cute face right next to me
Letting me borrow your lighter
It makes the parking garage a bit brighter
What does it take to feel normal again

We’re watching the television and I want to tell you that I really don’t like cartoons
Especially when they’re made for adults
But I take a look at you
And you’re laughing like it’s your last day on Earth
And you’re spending it with me

So I wait for the joke to end and then I kiss you like it’s the last time I’ll ever see you
Even though that’d be such a drag
I already miss you

You’re driving me home on the freeway
And I already miss you

In the sunshine

Peach, lime and nectarines
You caught me off guard, wearing those jeans
Surreal nights
Sugar and spice
Mix it up and make ice, the kind that I like

I’m shivering in your jacket
You’re born for the cold
We do things our way
Not their way
You with scotch, me with flowers
We breathe in life, uncontrolled
You in the sunshine, holding a bunch of marigolds

Am I becoming predictable?
The glass house I live in
You’re fire and you’re staining my bedroom floor
Like dark coal
Let dreams unfold
I come rusty but I promise I’m whole

We melt each others’ ice cream
Dance like we’ve been together ages
You don’t just love me; you love me in stages
Like wildfire all over the pages

Lavender and lilies, green common sage
I remember exactly what I was wearing that day
Blue watch, shiny like gold dust
In me you put all of your trust
The real kind, what we discussed

If I was a sparrow and I chose to fly
How long would you follow behind?