Tag: Mythology

I’ve come to realize that I’m both
an old soul in a young body and
a new soul just learning how to be alive
meaning there are times
when the only people I relate to
are those with enough years and experience
to be my grandparents
sometimes I’m incredibly confused
by the choices my peers make
because nothing seems thought through at all
but other times
I’m exuberant with my joy for each moment
each breath a gasp of delight
cheeks aching with a permanent smile
or sometimes I don’t understand
why we can’t all just get along and be happy
it seems so simple
this is the life of an underworld spirit
forever teetering between wise and naive

to know a name is to hold power
but true names are hard to learn
I mean
it’s like a child trying to understand physics
there are bits and pieces explainable in ways that
anyone could comprehend
but the bigger concepts are impossibly complex
so too is my true name
it’s more than just a sound passing through your lips
it’s the scent of rain after a long dry spell
the sepia tones cast over everything by sunglasses
the sharp bite of a lemon wedge
the relief of a well tucked blanket in winter
my true name is an experience
just like me

hello
is this okay?
I’m not sure if you remember me but
hello
I’m a human
no
really
I promise I’m human this time
I made sure of it
checked the box on the way out
yes
hello?
I used to curl up next to your sleeping body
in that hidden alcove
the cave no one else could see behind those bushes
do you remember it?
you let me eat your scraps and
I led you to the next meal
nose to the ground
paws careful not to make a sound
we were a pack or
a partnership
family of a sort
I kept you safe from the hungry ones
I always kept you safe
hello?

I had wings once in elementary school
at recess I’d let them unfold
feathers ruffled by the spring breeze
no one questioned them
no one told me to be more human
but still
I’d carefully tuck them back in
when we returned to class
shift myself into something normal
the wings faded away with puberty and
I didn’t miss them once they disappeared
but sometimes
I wonder if the devil fell before or after
forgetting how to fly

I would follow you into the depths of hell for a kiss
this is how thoroughly you’ve ruined me
made me unholy
this is what a newborn demon looks like
you’ve won this twisted game of temptation
convinced me to forsake myself
with just a smile
sin has never been so damn delicious
as this almost love
this not quite romance
I would rather be made a demon
than be slave to your desire
I’m a wildfire
out of control and terrifying and you
can’t contain me
hell can’t even contain me
but it can try
you can shove me down into the darkness
until the only light left is Lucifer’s wicked smile
and the last sound you’ll hear from me
will still be laughter
at least the devil knows my real name

we get a bad rep as
sex crazed demons out to devour your soul
but the truth is far more complicated
I can taste your pleasure on my tongue
when I make you laugh
I breathe in your happiness
when you read those text messages
from your special friend
oh yes
my sweet pet
I feed off of everything that brings you joy
sex is like a candy bar
a quick sugar fix but never a good meal
let me swallow your smile until I’m full to bursting
trust me when I say you can do it
feed the succubus in me with all your clothes still on

if you squint a bit
you can see the truth about me
yes
I am a dragon
my true form hidden inside of
tattooed skin and wild hair
but look
I’ve still got a nest
a pile of pillows and blankets that in no way
resembles a blanket fort
and look
I’ve got a hoard of books and movies
that are definitely as valuable as any mound of gold
and look
I’ve still got wings
a mind alight in flight and
okay
alright
so I don’t really have wings
but still
I swear it’s true
I’m totally a dragon

I want to dress up as a ghost
and haunt someplace full of fog and eerie silence
I want my mouth to be all sharp teeth and terrifying
I want to hear your pulse jump
when I appear out of the mist
I want you to shiver at my grey skin
too scared to scream or run away
let me be your horror story darling
I’ll be the best one yet

the older I get
the further the glamour fades
the less human I become
this old magic isn’t holding up well
to the rampage of technology and time
the digital world a comfortable mask
while these sunsets and moonrises
tick away at mortal life
I think they’re starting to notice how I don’t age
this body refusing to wrinkle and ripen
into something less adolescent
I probably have just a few more years
before these humans realize
what they’ve had hidden in their midst
since 1987

when you offered me your throat
laid out your body like a banquet in my bedroom
I should’ve sank my teeth into your flesh
taken your unthinking sacrifice
before sunrise made you remember yourself
I have so much left to say to you
but the light
the light made me leave
not your light though
because your light was pure moonbeam and hellfire
I wish my mouth knew your skin
fragile pulse against kiss-bruised lips
or that my tongue knew your taste
rather than just the taste of your name
humans are dangerous addictions
it may take an eternity to forget your voice
and the ache you left behind
when you offered me
a taste

imagine a girl who spends most of her life moving
traveling from one place to another
never settling down
as she leaves a place
the people left behind forget her name
her face
because she’s forgettable
I guess
the way a stranger on the bus is forgotten
when they get off at the next stop
it’s always been this way for her
like she drags every memory from her friends
and wrings out whatever might
bring their minds wondering back toward her
it’s like being forgotten is her superpower
or maybe it’s her curse
either way
it gets lonely when you’re the only person
who remembers

we’ve always had a strange relationship
in the way you’ve witnessed my lowest lows
hidden in the cold
winter has been my favorite season
but it’s never been particularly kind to me
you tweaked my nose with your frosty fingertips
while my world fell apart
it’s funny
that December is often when my world
chooses to fall apart
but still
I miss you after spring arrives
my bruised and battered heart more obvious
after the frost melts away
like a true winter’s child
I count the months until you come back to me
your first kiss always burns my lungs
but makes me laugh
giddy at your return and whatever it brings
winter is the season of dead things
of letting things go
I’m not sure how I’d handle it without you
even if you’re touch only ever hurts me