Restored

I do not run
or hide
from pain
anymore
sometimes I lay with it too long
it seduces me and we create
unnecessary misery
but I don’t drown
in a bottle,
or hide in the body of another
There is no escape
from reality
for me
Thank God
from that
I have been freed...
Unshackled
I have the opportunity
at least
to see the truth.

Look with Love...

Be careful
then
I implore you
when you judge
you know not
what ghosts
your neighbor
has lurking in the corners
of his mind
what he is bound to
what he is afraid of
what he cannot seem to triumph over
We all have them
you know
ghosts packed so thickly around us
it is a wonder we can see each other at all
Perhaps we cannot…

Sharing Center Stage

I bare
more than most
Emotions
rush through me
insisting on their turn
to take center stage
by storm
and announce
their presence
They fight
over whose turn it is
like small siblings
vying for my attention
I sometimes play
favorites
and allow
FEAR
to be my pet
She is naughty
and requires
constant attention
at times
but COMPASSION,
GENTLENESS
and LOVE
are here in larger force
when combined
Bursts of ANGER
can come out of nowhere
and pummel them to the ground
They cower in the corner
protected briefly by PASSION
waiting to be rescued
by FAITH
who
always
inevitably arrives
and saves us all…

Out of my head...

I have more questions
than answers
and I tire of living
in my head
where my thoughts
race around
like crying toddlers
superglued to my feeble knees
and beg me
for a reprieve
and I can’t solace
or comfort them
anymore
yet they continue to cry
wearing
wearing me
wearing me down
I am out
of platitudes
that roll
glibly off my tongue
to create plastic peace
I am empty
of solutions
Only God
knows my future
Only God
knows my heart
Only God
hears my cries
made on those same weak knees
on my bathroom floor
Why then
do I ever turn
to anything but
Him for answers?