Starting with short, clean,
clear-polished slates,
twice or thrice
daily lotioning,
keeping mind and body
meaningfully occupied,
together
can grow
a new path through the forest.
Tag: skin
bacteria and toxins and irritants
My body must be trying to tell me something
with her relentless outbursts
manifesting as
psoriasis
and eczema
and acne
and cysts
across my scalp
around my eyes
splattered on my face
because why not?
Creams and lotions
and acne-fighting facial cleansers
deploy to the offensive efforts.
Success is slow
and interjected with flare-ups.
I wonder if my body
is trying to rid herself
of bacteria and toxins and irritants.
I wonder if my body
is unintentionally attracting
bacteria and toxins and irritants
and for some reason
absorbing them, unable to let go?
I don’t like to see, to feel,
my body fighting a war
so I employ the creams and lotions
and acne-fighting facial cleansers
to help her restore balance and calm.
I know not for sure
her true message,
but her anguish is undeniable.
a movie of us
After all this time
you returned to my subconscious
drawing the curtains behind my closed eyes
to screen a movie
a movie of us
where we’re back there,
where we knew each other,
but also now, where we don’t.
How did you manage to combine
and intertwine them?
I could touch your skin
I could hear your voice.
You were there, with me,
real.
You were so real
that when the curtains spread
and my eyes opened
I looked around the room for you
hoping to find you
wanting what I realized was a dream
to be reality.
As hours pass today
the touch of your skin
the sound of your voice
and the energy between us
dissipates
until now
where I can hardly remember.
I cannot comprehend how or why
you came to me
but I thank you
and I hope to see you again soon.
ritual of release
Every night,
once the sun has disappeared from the sky
granting space for darkness to expand
I free my body from clothing,
step beneath falling water.
Lights dim,
air moistening and heating,
steam rising as the water falls,
I release.
Wash away the thoughts,
the anxieties, celebrations,
feel them fall away
watch them swirl down the drain.
Sense the new, fertile ground
for new life to bloom from,
within, underneath, skin.
Stand beneath the falling water
eyes closed,
ritual of release.
whispered requests for love
Look down at your hands,
see the redness exposed in the deep layers of skin
underneath the outer.
The outer layers are gone.
The deeper skin, vulnerable;
often hidden away and protected
now can breathe its own air.
Feel the tenderness of each fingertip,
listen to their whispering requests for love.
How many other facets of the body
also whisper requests for love to you,
staying hidden in the deep, base layers
of who you are?
Though hidden from eyesight,
can you feel them?
Travel through the body with breath and presence
to locate and hear the whispers.
Rest now, dear one.
Skin and tissue will regenerate with time, and love.
Praise the sacrifices your body gifts,
praise its commitment to your life.
Rest now.
showered by the wind
Showered by the wind
fresh, new air washes over every inch
of my indoor acclimated skin,
blowing away residue of emotions, thoughts,
clinging to me still.
Walking into and with,
I feel the power of the wind
penetrate deeper than skin,
marveling at the strength to accomplish this,
a force I cannot see.
I feel renewed,
wiped clean as a slate to start again.
real as a dream
I can see you standing beside me
talking to me
looking at me
I can feel you touching me
skin to skin.
There, on the driveway,
dropping me off outside the door
lingering for goodnight.
Our lips join in fireworks
the pattern rehearsed.
My mind plays games with me,
this dreamworld.
You know as well as I
we never saw each other again
and likely never will.
the heat and the coolness
If I stand here,
still enough for long enough
and breathe,
I can feel the heat of the sun
penetrating my skin
warming me from the inside out,
I can feel the coolness
of the soft wind brushing
and sliding over me,
I can feel the solid, firm ground
unwavering beneath my feet.
I feel the heat and the coolness
at the same time,
inside and outside
my body.
Open my eyes to be blinded
by the sun
dancing across the water
and a new gust of wind
tousling my hair.
Heartbreakingly beautiful.
they are human
Killed
for the color of skin.
Beneath the color,
beneath the size, shape,
and everything between,
they are human.
We are all human.
Our voices, our protests,
our demands to protect humanity
ring around the world.
Black lives matter.
Enough is enough.
cold but clean
I can feel you here
in the strong gusts of wind
that wash over me like a tidal wave
and move under my clothes,
against my skin,
and leave me feeling cold
but clean.
Dawning Words 