Dirge

They gathered near
Frail and wretched
Raggedly naive
Naked with fear
Trapped deep inside

They came with knives
Sharpened in vain
And wanton disregard
Construed as hate
Faded from wear

Focused in dreams
Shallow but centered
While the fire raged
Burning white hot
Like forged metal

The shuffling line
Emerged into the light
Silently lethal
Even in fragility
Humming a dirge song

They gathered near
Emotional in death
Voices raised mile high
In time to the rhythm
Of the eternal heat

On the longest night.

Exhale

She makes me exhale
Calm and collected
While she breathes me in
Her scent lingering near
A whisper in my ear
As my heart beats faster
A rhythm all its own
Hesitant but rising
In time with hers
She looks at me sideways
While she breathes me out
A ragged dance of breath
Smelling so sweet
Teasing my senses
As she turns away
Her hand on my wrist
Butterfly quick
Then gone with the night
Back into the shadows
While I breathe her out
In a whoosh.

Bathsheba

Scandalous sin
Wrapped in scarlet
Keeping secrets
Best left alone
Lost in translation
Lying in repose
Slightly scarred
Startlingly bare
Transparently thin
She waits alone
Denizen of the night
Skin of pure white
Solicitous by nature
Little girl grown up
Playing roles
Meant to shock
But sad imitations
Pale skin juxtaposed
Against brilliant red
Draped across her bed
Searching for meaning
In a blurry world.

Love in a Glass

I captured love in a glass
And stirred it with my finger
Letting it linger a bit
Before moving on
Because that’s what people do
They’re see-through
Waiting to capture you
And I waited for love’s shadow
To come and grace my door
But I’m waiting no more
For it comes in like a wave
Crashing against the rocks
And ebbs with the tide
Like a runaway bride
Testing its limits
Fighting to be free
To reach for more
Straining against its bonds
But that was yesterday
When I was wiser still
Thinking love would come again
To knock on my chamber door
Yet I can hear no sound.

Black Girl

Black girl
Skin like burnished bronze
Incandescently thin
Shining from within
Perfectly toned
Long legs coltish
Stretching for miles
An expanse of skin
Sensuously sweet
Like dark chocolate
Melting my willpower
Making me weak
That black girl
With her pouty lips
And come-hither stare
Beckoning me near
Making me sweat
Burning like fire
Consume me.

Shallow

The method was messy
As crude as oil
Yet effective
Somewhat unexpected
Like a blue moon
Large on the horizon
And coming closer
The message was clear
A sign from the gods
Subtle like mist
Descending from heaven
Opaque in design
Soon broken
Warm to the touch
Like she used to be
When I was her
But time is shallow
And erases all things
Like an angel in white
Chained to a rusty cross
Waiting for the dawn.