I want to be called strong
Not beautiful, not smart
Strong
Not physically, but mentally
I could get along as long as I'm strong

I want to be strong
Maybe as I had been before my illness
Maybe as I am after

I know I am strong
I have been, and always will be
I am strong even as I am weak
I am strong even in my last week

Your tears burn into my soul
And cleanse it of
The darkness it holds

Your smile sets in my eyes
And puts out the fire
There disguised

Your words ring in my ears
And I know I'm truly happy
For the first time in years

you're so cool and i can't even skateboard off a curb

why do you even think about my eyes?
(I think about yours sometimes too)

i once dated a boy who found it "adorable" that i know how to change my headlights
     fill my radiator
     change the oil
     and notice every stopsign as i'm halfway through it
he dumped me via text

before that
there was a boy who loved my lack of first person capitalization
     my over-use of metaphores and similies
     the way i personify the night
     and practice preforming poetry in the shower
he took off into the sunset with my journal in his shoulder-sack

and somewhere in between
i stopped asking myself what it means
threw up my hands
     and learned to enjoy the ride

The dark does not see light
It doesn't exist
The light sees the dark
For that's how the light appreciates itself