the heat
you left with me
last night
still smolders
the wind catches
your scent
and refreshes
my senses

i am a leaf
falling from your tree
upon which i was
impaled

”

~ from Autumn Poems, Nikki Giovanni

…maybe that’s the problem

I always feel like I can do and feel and say

Whatever my mind & heart believe.

I tend to go within myself

And forget that you won’t receive.

I don’t have any limitations

When it comes to you

Even though I know what the results are

And that I’ll end up feeling blue.

I just ignore the red flags

My light of appropriate or not burns dim

And maybe, just maybe

…maybe that’s the problem.

But if my words

Can push you far away so easy

Can shut you down

And make you feel so queasy.

Then we are not

At the core what I know we are;

At least, in my mind

What I’ve wished for from afar.

I make no apologies

My feelings, I wear like an emblem.

And maybe, just maybe

…maybe that’s the problem.

Sometimes I want to be close to you

Just to feel you near

Other times I want to slap you because

You always retreat in fear.

I remember, dream, and want too much, I know

But these thoughts of mine

Will not let me let you go.

I will tell you that I’m afraid too,

Of what I’ve become

And maybe, just maybe

…maybe that’s the problem.

~ MAF

Wish for nothing larger
Than your own small heart
Or greater than a star;
Tame wild disappointment
With caress unmoved and cold
Make of it a parka
For your soul.

Discover the reason why
So tiny human midget
Exists at all
So scared unwise
But expect nothing. Live frugally
On surprise.

~ Alice Walker