forever was our promise
too bad it can’t be kept
even good intention
couldn’t keep us on our track

so now it’s separation
after that will be divorce
how quickly love can dissipate
when we fall far off course

she smiles politely
says kind things
surrounded by friends
she seems so alluring

but it’s all superficial
each day comes and goes
though no one’s the wiser
she’s on the edge of her toes

you once needed me. i stood tall. life held everything in front of us. we’d run until we fall. tripping, missing steps. we’d forge ahead through quicksand. it dragged us under so slowly. years passed and i lost sight. of all that truly matters. but now i see the light.

an ancient creature
millions of years
and she persists
each egg brings life
small, delicate
born into her first form
the caterpillar

i tried washing you away
18 years circling the drain
you moved on quickly, no time to think
my worth reduced down before i could blink

she didn’t go looking for trouble
sometimes that’s just a myth
all she longed for
all to achieve
the sincerest form of companionship

no wedding ring on
you took your aim
firing bullets
your favorite game

was your trip everything you wanted?
did she give you something new?
i never realized. i wasn’t prepared
replacement came so soon

a prison i paid for with a steep entry fee
the lines from the blinds fade to cold bars of steel
so grey are the walls, there’s no color within
i mask all my sadness with the happiest spin

you held me in the palm of your hand
the power i had diminished
which fed into my grounding
no grass, no sand, no dirt, no land