13 days left

A Few of my Favorite Things

I wrote this thinking of Elizabeth, though it holds true for all of my close friends.

This is best of all:
Pressing another human being to your chest
while shards of ocean drip down her face
and whisper everything in her ear
"I know it hurts, but God heals."

This is what I like best:
sitting on her quilt,
little heaps of night clothes,
up entirely too late.
Words tumble out of her mouth
I catch them in my hands.
Later, I tuck the words into my pocket,
for safe keeping,
and fingering when I pray for her.

And this is really wonderful:
thinking of something to make her heart light up
and doing just that
with my hands and brain
sowing together bits of love into a blanket.
And then her face
is perfect.

And oh, oh, oh (!):
knowing that she will do it all for you.

Driver's Ed Break Time

I cannot write there
somehow, the songs inside of me
cannot break free into a place like that.
White. Pictures of death on the walls. Subduing.

Unicorns and fairies,
even human girls,
stay locked inside of me
afraid
and rightly so
of the other teenagers.
Their stories would remain untold
but I do not remain there.

And so here,
at the library,
a building filled with poems and peasants
they are free.

Thank goodness.