it’s not that I’m afraid of you
but that you are starting to look at me like I’m the answer
and I’m not sure I understand the question
it’s that someone else didn’t like the answer they got
and tried to rewrite me into something else
something less than
it’s that I’m hesitant to put myself into words
to transform into something immutable and defined
just because they lack the vocabulary to comprehend my nebulous heart
it’s not that I don’t trust you
but that it’s always been safer to run than stand my ground
that it’s easier to collect pretty postcards in a drawer
than to write a love letter that
may or may not
touch a dozen hearts along the way
exposed to each curious glance with little thought
and no recourse
Tag: Love / Heartbreak
obviously any poems about love, heartbreak, and relationships
you are worthy [poem]
you are worthy of every good thing that happens to you
repeat this every morning to your reflection
until it feels like fact
you are allowed to be happy
even when there is nothing special to be happy about
your smile is allowed to flourish in the sunlight
without explaining itself to the lazy wilted daisies
you are full of potential the way a beach is full of sand
don’t ever think your last chance has come and gone
just shake out the other shoe
count each grain that escapes another
hidden opportunity
you are so easy to love at first sight
that puppies can’t resist the urge to kiss you
this is a super power
embrace it and do good
you are a gift on a random Tuesday
a free coffee with extra whip
some people don’t like the taste of sweet things
because they prefer to stay black coffee bitter
be sweet anyway
a world in which my love is an ocean and you are a thirsty man [poem]
the truth in 3 parts
1
I warn you about the salt
but you say you always like water with a little flavor
the science cannot sway you
2
you dive to the bottom of my coral reef before you
open up your mouth to drink
anyone can tell you this is a terrible idea but voices are just
gurgling noises underwater
3
you leave me thirstier than you started
ocean water
is an illusion of hydration
but your body will know this and keep begging for more to drink
you may die trying to swallow the entire ocean
and never quench your thirst
bonus truth
I’m sorry
going through the motions [poem]
when I started writing these poems
Love
I admit I was just
going through the motions of prayer
without really expecting an answer
call these love letters catharsis
a way to lessen the ache when loneliness
knots up my back until I can’t sleep at night
you are the sheep I count to find a way to sleep at night
you are a dream
the kind that always leaves me
wide awake at dawn
magic [poem]
it’s been a long time since I knew the rush of magic
tell me
what is it like to touch a body seeped in
moonlight and mystery?
have you seen the face of a goddess and trembled
at the curl of her lip?
has your agnostic heart learned to beat out a hallelujah
in my name?
a pessimist at heart [poem]
I am a pessimist in sheep’s clothing
a firm believer in preparing for the worst
because if you consider every possible outcome
and plan around the biggest failure
handling any success becomes a million times easier
I will love you with the fullness of a sunflower in June
and I will be ready for you to leave at a moment’s notice
I will never expect you to stay
pessimism is always watching the pretty blue sky for rain clouds
even as I murmur your name against your skin
I’m sorry if my lack of faith offends you
but love has proven itself a complicated game
the rules ever changing
the players never quite on the same page
is it any wonder
I’ve learned to prepare myself to lose
just in case I’ve misplaced my pieces on the board again?
the poem where everything is a bad metaphor about loving me [poem]
most puppies eagerly pounce on new people
tails wagging a mile a minute
this mutt lays at your feet
still and cautious
quiet around these unfamiliar predators
a bee knows itself a bomb with a self-destruct button
it will protect the hive anyway
one dead bee is such a minor thing
weighed against the honey that isn’t taken this time
bulletproof glass looks just as delicate as any other window
but lets through only the light
it keeps safe those who stand behind it
ready to break but remain unshattered
the cracks on its surface
proof of the protection it gave and will keep giving
a screen protector on your phone is meant to break
absorbing every thunk and crash and ding
to keep the phone’s true face uncracked
some things are made to be broken
and that’s okay
the deepest point of the ocean falls in the Marianas Trench
some 7 miles underwater
only three humans have dared the depths
knowing death would swim alongside their vessels
curiosity is a dangerous addiction
only humans seem to possess
limitless love [poem]
once I believed in true love like it was some
once in a lifetime thing
like we only get one shot at happiness
and everything else is just a lonely heart trying too hard
to light a fire in the middle of the ocean
my greatest lesson has been unlearning such
limited measures of what love can be
the world is a thousand times more beautiful
with love in every breath and heartbeat
I will not say I love you out loud [poem]
I will bite my tongue and only murmur the words in my sleep
until the day you tell me there’s love between us
let my dandelion love play the unnoticed weed
growing in the cracks of the pavement
I will sprout love almost anywhere you know
but I will never presume a permanent home
after all
most weeds are unwanted guests
you never invited in the first place
crossing the line [poem]
the line is right there
right next to my toes
I could step over it so easily
just a quick skip and I’d be free
from this awkward desire to say it
to tell you where my heart is
to admit it isn’t mine anymore
and you are now its master
this heart [poem]
this heavy heathen heart
knows hope
knows humble
knows how to keep humming
when happiness is hard to hold
knows to heal after hurt instead of harden
knows a hollow bucket with no holes
can be filled again and so
knows to stay whole and holy even when it’s hollow
this human heartbeat is a hymn to the old gods
without a hint of hesitation
elephant graveyard [poem]
I may never know love again
and it hurts to admit that
I will love
of course
because my every smile is a sign of affection
even for a stranger
but I may never let someone past
the elephant graveyard made up of my ex lovers
and their promises
let the sun bleached bones
speak of the need for honesty
even if it kills us
I don’t want any more bodies buried
in the valley between the truth and the trouble
let there be a safe path to my heart
that a worthy seeker may find their way in
every word a prayer [poem]
Love is my god
the only divine spirit listening when I pray
do you know
how many poems I’ve sacrificed in Love’s name?
watching my words burn down
into embers in the darkness
each line
a struck match
my heart
the dancing sulfuric smoke
praise Love and its endless mercy
Larissa Lee 