A Semi Collection of Jaded Misgivings

Stay still
Like the open maw of a cowering grave
Immersed in all the browns the earth wishes to hide,
Dig your fingertips into your thigh,
Your toes drenched deep in the soil
And cast out all but the monochrome memories
That shoots you down, drowns you out.

Forget your relation to the leather
Hides of dying clouds,
Forget where you’ve placed your person
Where his hands lay on your chest
Where smoke slips from his eyes
And chokes you.
Ignore the imprint of his knuckles
Burnt into your ribs,
The cracking of plaster
As your colors fade beneath the heat of his dismissal.
Ignore the better that waits
On blades of grass just across the sidewalk.
You are stories
Dog-eared and worn
Used only for cold beer rings
And forgotten bookshelves
Tossed carelessly on slivering wood that leaves you bleeding.

But forget that,
Forget all of it
Because he said he loved you.