confession: I thought
the word RUMINATION was
named after Rumi
                             (the Persian poet)

that's when I knew you're
good for me — I liked myself
more for liking you

ᴵ one day, you came and
took all the plants that wilted
and made them blossom

ᴵᴵ you took all the plants
that I can't make flower and
made them bear good fruit

ᴵᴵᴵ when my kindness to
myself wilted, you showed me
your garden of it ⚘

all night, we pretend
not to notice each other —
like a warm cold war

and I find rest in
knowing that you're the keeper
of the rest of me ☄

my patience would leave
me like its house — it'd always
find a home in you

how long have I been
living a stranger to my
very own longing?

if I don't know what
I want, do I even know
who I really am?