To the ones who came before me

 I often say to her

I don't know how anyone let her get away

But I am thankful

For the lessons she learned

Growing from loving, conflict

How she learned to claim her voice

She tells me now

The best ways to love her

And boy do I 

Oh

I get why you're angry

Since you've realized what you lost

I'd be devastated too

Because you knew it

For a time but 

Over time, under communication

Faded or changed

As love tends to do

When the stars aren't aligned

And differences start to matter more

But this connection is ordained

By celestial light

Maybe you think I'm foolish

I don't think so

Perhaps it's arrogance but I think it's

More time and experience

Knowing what forever really looks like

How the paths we took

Though separate and winding

Converged perfectly in this moment

Different yet somehow the same

Two halves of a heart

Identical flames

I don't begrudge you

Digital swan songs

Heal however you need to, sis

Then move along

Find yourself

Meet your shadow

Dig deep and maybe

You'll find someone 

Whose soul you can nourish

But...

This one is mine

Church

 Manifestation prayers

Vulnerable confession

Worship bodies

Drink of each other

Speak in tongues

Tithe with gifts

Spiritual and holy

Our love is a religion

A Poem for Her

 Being with her is like

Stepping into the sunlight

After living in a basement apartment 

With no windows 

She makes me feel held 

Like the way 6 year old me

Would hold onto ceramic figurines

Fragile treasures 

I was lucky to touch 

She treats my body

Like a collector caressing pages

Of a first edition

She swells like the ocean

Mighty and deep

But she rocks me gently 

So I don't get seasick 

Halls of my labyrinthine heart

Echoed empty

Too difficult to navigate

But she can walk through walls

Past lives

 I wonder

How many of these words

We've spoken to each other

In other lifetimes together

Gloomy

 Eventually your thunder stops

Echo chamber quiets

Left with your storm cloud

In stillness alone

My sunlight won't be there

To brighten your gray skies

Cup

You cup my worries 

In your hands

Just like my face

And you kiss away 

Tears trailing from both

15 Seconds of Joy

 Do you think I didn't notice

You stopped watching my story

When I starting writing

In the language of love

#masclesbian

 I stare at her in wonder

She is modern art

Mondrian, Nevelson, Pollock

Some fools don't get it

Bravery required every day

While she wears it on her sleeve

Her sexuality, her heart

Bundle of complexity

Tough but soft

Driven yet sentimental

They don't understand the beauty

How she takes control

To kiss me gently

Masculine packaged girl 

Who loves her flowers

Her words take me dancing

Though sometimes I lead

Our scales balance

The emotional weights

Give and take

My goodness she's a giver

And I live in awe of my luck

That I even get to hold her hand

Thanks Technology

 I wrote to you many times

Not knowing the address was yours

Sent my words on the air 

Out of my hands 

Calling to you blindfolded 

And the universe carried you to me

I met you in my bedroom

I Don't Mind Aging

You don't like the lines in your face but

I read them like a storybook

How often a big grin spreads across

Your skins remembers

The magic of your laughter

I'm jealous of the sun

All its kisses to your forehead

And of time itself

The journey you've had together

Walking alongside your growth

Now here you are in front of me

A champion of all the past 

Challenges and heartache

Crinkles around your eyes

Show your resilient spirit

And my intention and promise:

I'll make those smile lines deeper

Tempered

Remember when these 

Flowing waters

Tempered your emotions

My arm looped through yours

Open body and soul

Solstice Steps

 The lapping shore

Pulls back my layers

My sternum peels open

Facing the pink sky

My footsteps along the path

Alone now

But I recall the sensation

My palm sweating

In your clasped hand

My quickened heartbeat

The fear

The joy

The last time I felt open

Oh dear

How my heart as bled

All over this park

Puzzling

 You saw us as wet puzzle pieces

Soggy warped edges

Could still be pressed together

The trouble was you wouldn't see

My picture was different

Your Side of the Bed

 Morning sun creeps in my window

Kissing my fluttering eyelids

I roll over to snatch a few more moments

Half asleep and already reaching for you

New Song

 She's like a new song

From my favorite musician

A familiar sound

Profound lyrics

I just want to play her

On repeat forever

Anxiety

 Left alone in my head

Thoughts creep up

Try to swallow me

My pulse raises

Hands shaking when I pause

Stomach tight and churning

Chest ache

Nervous

 I was always afraid

Like a shelter dog

Who has learned 

To recoil from touch