I’m terrified of the unknown
so scared of letting happiness
fall through my careless fingers
like countless grains of sand
I’m always afraid of being
one choice short of a game over
my heart too tired to try again and again
inaction feels so much safer from the start
Tag: Love / Heartbreak
obviously any poems about love, heartbreak, and relationships
my favorite book [poem]
I treat my heart like my favorite book
thumbing through the happy memories from time to time
retelling those stories with a smile
but like my favorite book
I’m both incredibly cautious
and amazingly careless with my heart
I might dog-ear the pages of my favorite moments
but I’m so nervous to let anyone borrow this love
who knows what kind of condition they’ll return it in
or if they’ll return it at all
right?
taking care of you [poem]
I want to keep you forever
I want to tuck your heart into the safety
of my own rib cage
I want to run my fingers through your hair
I want to hold the world at bay
until you’re rested and ready to face it again
I want to bake you cookies
I want to fill you up until you’re not hungry anymore
be it for food or fun or affection
I want to curl up in the circle of your arms
I want to love you so thoroughly
that you forget what being lonely felt like
hopeless romantic [poem]
I’m not a hopeless romantic
my heart is full to the brim with hopeful optimism
instead I consider myself a helpless romantic
the kind of person who can’t help but want to love you
I will paint a lover’s every action with romance
but I will do the same to the actions of a stranger
love is in every moment
in every smile
every word
I can’t help but want love to be
all-encompassing and ever-present
midwinter love [poem]
time slips by a phantom
without a whisper or goodbye
and suddenly it’s midwinter
and the grey skies murmur our names
a couple’s incantation
drawing us together to defeat the cold
and I want to watch the seasons change with you
taste the midsummer berries
under the blinding sun
and know we’ll melt next winter too
that new spring growth and dead autumn leaves
are both beauties we will witness together
again and again
a dragon’s hoard [poem]
when people break your trust you have a choice
become hard or become cautious
hard means you’re safe in your castle
an untouched treasure in the depths of the dungeon
cautious means you’re vigilant
eyes tracking every flicker and flinch around you
the closer they get
the tighter you’re wound
trust is a commodity worth hoarding
so when I say I trust you Love
I’m telling you that your presence makes me unwind
a subconscious reaction
to the safety you’ve come to represent
thief [poem]
no one noticed
when you stole the moon and
tucked it in your back pocket
most people are too focused on
the brilliance of the sun
to miss the lunar glow
three [poem]
there have been three nights this year
where I forgot about my poetry
while lying in your arms
it’s no surprise though
that loving you takes up all of the words in me
and makes me silent
voodoo doll [poem]
a stitch slips into the fabric
and the needle pricks my fingertip
call it an offering
payment for the spell
justice woven in my blood
a little doll to dance away her bitterness
until cooler heads prevail
I’m an open book [poem]
do you like to read Love?
I always wanted to find a man who
enjoyed a good story
the kind of audience that could
swallow the angst in the middle there
someone who wouldn’t
put me down to get away from the scene
painted across my pages
the purest scent of home [poem]
when I murmur I love you against your skin
I’m purring as best as I can in this human form
my nose pressed against your chest
so I can breathe you in
until it’s only you
filling my senses to the brim
afraid of you [poem]
with every month that passes
I’m more and more unsure of you
and all your eventual love
I can’t help but think
maybe you and I are better off strangers
two lives coexisting
but never crossing paths
the idea of you gets fuzzier each night
my stomach
twisted with anxiety because
maybe you’ll be a warm fire on a winter’s night
but maybe you’ll just burn me
all wildfire with no control
I’m afraid of being your too dry forest
a thirsty tree unable to avoid feeding your flames
I’m afraid of you
love
and every moment I know of you
but do not know you yet
stokes the fear higher
a wish and a prayer [poem]
I go for weeks without thinking about you
but sometimes
barely an hour goes by
before someone or something reminds me
to hold my breath
I don’t enjoy holding my breath love
my asthma and this cold winter weather
makes me breathless enough
without you
I’m tired of carrying the burden of patience
tired of keeping the door to my heart unlocked
just for you
I’d rather close up shop and move on
turn toward less important things
until the ache of your absence fades from my bones
however long that takes
I just don’t have the energy to keep waiting
on a wish and a prayer
Larissa Lee 