Day: Dec 23, 2021

I see it all in retrospect now,

I see how it all played out –

How I gleefully jumped up and down

When I received the news,

How I declared my love out loud

While missing all the cues.

I see it all clearly now, I swear.

I know I look worse for wear,

Stuck in my own head,

Unable to forgive my own fears.

But I promise I was so in love,

I could have called an enemy dear.

I see it all crumble to pieces in my palm.

Not one, not two – three times,

Yet somehow, I stay calm

As they tell me to forget about the rhymes,

Forget my own gods and psalms.

I see it all turning to dust, I see it dying.

You know, the prophets were lying –

And everyone who came after them too.

My lips are turning ocean blue

As I compose another poem about trying.

I see it all becoming my past,

I knew good things were not meant to last.

Was it good though?

Was it just coping until someone asked –

Do you notice yourself sinking down low?

I see myself appearing full of hope,

But I am at the end of my rope.

I see how it all played out,

The memories feel like shouts

As I approach the downward slope.

I see it all in retrospect now,

I see myself, hear the whys and the hows,

And maybe that is enough,

Enough to make a vow –

Exit before the times get rough,

Exit, love, exit now.

-Jackie