proof

under circus lights
I did not know which way to look first
the costumes or the scenery
the set pieces occupying
my eyes
like only shiny things will do
absorbing and reflecting
you entirely
even the pieces you thought you hid so well
obvious
when I cut the switch.

~

RNH

Hoop

The table jumped
The pieces leapt and forced
To shift
When the earthquake of the moment
Hit and moved you
From your defining
Sheathe, you railed
Against the ghostly, trapping
Circumstance and desired
Most of all, to scatter
Free.

~

RNH

Suture

And when I spoke
I chose my words carefully
Pen to paper, ink--a thread
And when I saw
I looked with both eyes, opened
My heart
And understood.

~

RNH

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

I will not ask you to fill my silence
or this void
I will find a way
myself.

~

RNH

Returning Kindness

Last week, while on the train ride home, a random stranger handed me a packet of tissues. The blue and white plastic crinkled in my fingers as I thanked her. I usually keep some in my purse, but had, embarrassingly, gone through all of mine.

A few days later, at the same station, I saw a young girl step onto the train. With her backpack slung over one shoulder and her hoodie up, she moved into the corner, then sank down to the shoeprint-dirty floor. Hunched over her phone, she stared blankly at the paragraphs of bubbled text messages. Her nose blushed and her cheeks shone, covered with tears.

I told her to keep them, like the woman had told me.

We all crumble sometimes. Don't close your eyes. Pay it forward.

~

RNH

tomorrow

because tomorrow will be
beautiful
and full of life
like a poem...

~

RNH

Harpoon

i know you feared the depth
i know you cast your line
and feared its measurement
avoiding anchor
as if never
to see the shore
or hope
for safety
i know you did
i know you
scoured the water
for an answer
that would not change
or disappear
their liquid center
caught in the mystery of your
self shifting and momentum
gathering, rising tidal
fury as terrifying
as its calm
i know you
hide when the sky becomes dark
catastrophe
teaching you all too well
the exterior hardens, the eyes
close, the ship turns
away
from itself
leaving becomes
the only palpable recourse
i know
no matter how many times you crash
and fail
i will still be here.

~

RNH

birdsong

And Adam in the cage
no longer grieved
for his lost Eve
no longer wept for his
heart fled
surrendered
alive
when he cut free...

~

RNH