All of It

look up at me, please 

this will just take a moment 

my eyes need to find yours 

for this 

so I can be sure 

you believe it 

raise your head 

in all seriousness 

you are everything 

even if others might have missed 

Reassurance

 Relaxing into the known 

assuredly resigned to be just fine

that’s what reassurance feels like 

drunk on one sweet word at a time 

Les’Nspired

I’m sorry, can you repeat the question?

I am asked why I write 

to someone that might 

as well be no one 

and perhaps 

perhaps 

Part of me wishes there was 

just one 

who didn’t have to ask me 

that at all 

Because they already know  

Writing Practice 1: Stars

Sometimes the thoughts

are circle circling in the brain

like a gerbil on a wheel

in the middle of the night

Stars shoot into the sky.

The moon sighs.

The planets align. 

How rare we find ourselves. 

We look out at the night sky 

in hopes of

catching something 

glowing and alive

that is not a city light

ruining it all.

Interpreter Required

When I say a lot of nothing

do you know what I'm trying to say?

When the wind gusts from the east

and shakes me like a beast

do you know what I mean?

When the sun rises warming me

and all the sunshine reminds me

do you know who I see?

When the moon sits consistent,

with stillness of the silent witness

do you perceive its significance?

The Ballet

The wait was torturous

"Be still!" they commanded as she swung her legs

She was counseled again, "Be patient."

So, she closed her eyes and blew out her lips.

"I will endure," she thought complaisant. 

Her mother could never abide

her movements in the chair

But sometimes she found it difficult

to remember that she did care!

The Library

It would take a quiet space

safe as a vault

to open up and lay bare

stories within the library

and when is there time for that?

as it seems we are always chasing it.

And in all honesty who even wants

to hear about any of it?

Loved

Whispers of your love

softly upon the ear

It echoes through the night

in a range tender and sincere

The glimmer of adornment

spoke of words that reassured

How enveloping your care is

and how blessed to be adored

poetry

she has written 

poetry 

about him
that runs like rivers lapping 

patiently against 
sharp edged rocks 
the repetitiveness 
smoothing out a new clean surface 
to pieces of her heart aged like old wood

I Am

i am the mystery 

of clues

hidden within sentences in books

words gathered from philosophizing

bible gems shining for the taking

i am a turned orange leaf floating

haphazardly to the ground

coals simmering in a pit

the gentle crackling sound

i am the full-bodied laughter

in a crowded room

and skates across a wood floor

the tap tap tap of dance shoes

the twirling of a fun dress

the dissatisfied poet's forevermore

deep blue

There is a hurt in me

that refuses to be filled

no one can see it

its pain is just too real

i am missing so much

of what completes me

and nothing exists

that sees me

Your Armor

Strength determined

to bury itself within

You felt it from the first day

and with every threat since

Resilience said "Nice to meet you.

You will get to know me well."

You grew to expect it to hold your hand

each time you found yourself at the bottom of a well

Courage boldly demanded

that you never forget him

And you never could for it was 

what let the light in

Patience

Lay my heart down upon reason

and let it wrap me

in comfort

with words of affection

I have craved for so much time

logic and sentimentality

marching as one around me

helping me to see

how cherished I have been

and how for much of it, I've been blind

Life

From one core memory to another

     the changing of tides like the change in weather 

to end then begin again,

      kindness and love prevailing together

-Les'Nspired

Just Me

You were multi-dimensional

with a nervous energy,

but every version chose her

so, she grew to value the rarity

because she saw you

in all of your degrees

and shifted in shape

to accommodate the variety

Teach You

Let me teach you

that words can mean

more than you give them

credit for

they can reach inside

and hold you

start a simmering fire within

and push and pull you

Let me teach you

that touch is trust

it's goal doesn't have to be lust

but to soothe and comfort you

Wooly Bear

fuzzy little woolly bear 

black and red and sweet 

cuddly bristles all down your back

cute little scrambling feet 

running to your hidey hole

to spend some time asleep 

before you go, I’ll just reach out 

and caress you tenderly 

you stop and turn 

I mean no harm 

you are so patient with me;

as if to say, “Yes I know 

thank you kindly, mam,

but I’ve somewhere to be.”

Confident

As confident as I am that after summer,

winter will soon follow,

I know, I know 

that at the end of the day the sun will sink low

and then soon the moon will rise 

and there is a place in california 

where you can see them both 

I know it to be unchanging 

cycles and seasons

the angles of the globe 

the perfection of the complex system

sustaining life to what we’ve yet 

to discover of the cosmos 

innocent

what was it like 

when he ached within his bones 

for the warmth of his mother’s arms?

for her tender voice 

and soft folds of her stomach 

to lean in and breathe in her scent?

when she left him 

would he know it was coming

like the scent of rain before a shower? 

would hollowness crack open

within his chest like an earthquake 

when she closed her eyes one last time?

January

January came

wrapped in snow

crunching, then still

and cold to the tip of my nose

Bundled in wool

puffs of foggy breath

deep sighs for the purity of the day

and a heart beating with depth

Noona

You love me hard 

then things will get scary

The world turns dark

and you will grow weary

My self-esteem plummets

to depths you've never reached

and all the signs that pointed to love

I'm reminding you in case you leave

Remember this time?

Remember what you said?

How you wouldn't change...

How love isn't dead?

All

Whispers come to me 

in the wind

this is the end, the end, the end

this is the end

The sun sets low 

as if I should know

it's time to let go, let go, let go

it's time to let go

No One Really

She sees you.

She sees you wide open

and up close,

the details clearly

speaking to her of past

memories and stories

but

no one sees her

and that is all the difference

-Les'Nspired

written May 12, 2024

Burden

I am no one's burden.

Only the grass beneath my feet

the land that must hold me

the rain that soaks me

the God that knows me...

The constant arms around me

are the universe and its creativity

my imaginations and thanksgivings

and My Father who honors me.

-Les’Nspired

What If

what if all my fears

were groundless

and the love i wanted was here?

what if i worried

to lose all

that would never disappear?

and what if all

my limitations

made me especially dear?

-Les'Nspired

written Aug 1, 2024

fair

i swam the deepest depths for love
i came up with a gasp, choking, 
only to find no one was there;

and painfully aware
in the dark alone 
i came home
to a truth profound and bare: 
i might be the only one 
on this side of the blue, 
will it bring me joy or fear?

where few would go 
one might fight alone
while others do not know to care; 
and you cannot swim in the brine 
without knowing sometimes
it may not wash up fair

-Les'Nspired

Healing

He lifted my head up again

and wiped the tears from my cheeks

“You will heal, my sweet girl.

You are always seen.”

I felt ruined inside

as if I held only darkness within

and He calmly soothed my concerns

with the fading of the light

Morning

Morning light caresses the dew upon the grass

The breeze is gentle and refreshing upon my skin
My cup of tea is bitter and sweet,
The ground cool beneath my feet,
And birdsong settles like peace within

-Les'Nspired

written: Nov 3, 2024

True Friend

She says she means every word
when she says I would be missed.

That my perseverance is a virtue.

That she's thankful I exist.

She says the decisions that I make

the way I work so hard,

Give her reasons to be impressed

and she holds such a tender regard.

Yolk

He looked at her
and he saw hope cracked
down the center
like an egg smashed and dripping
yolk sinewy and disturbed;
He saw loss and ache
and a little girl skipping about
growing into a woman
who forgot everything about love
because it was strained out of her;

And he stood there helplessly
because he could do not a thing about it
But to peer into her eyes,
seeing it all
and offering sincere consolation
through his own rich depths;
They spoke for him of “Holding on”
And “Not giving up”
And it took everything for her not to turn
away in hopelessness
and fling herself off the despairing cliff

It took everything.

-Les'Nspired

written: Dec 21, 2024

Flying Fish

When he learned
even if he was aquatic, he had wings
it gave him moments
where he felt free

He flew above the water
seconds at a time
she was his for then
he lived for it each time