We venture into the storm
Against my better judgment
(I’m ready to go home)

The wind kicks up
And a thousand
No
A million flower petals
Swirl around us frenetically.
Great beasts of raw, hungry light snap their jaws
Not so far away

You aren’t scared,
Your curls wild in the dark.
The storm, you say.
The storm, Mama!

The sirens, now,
And the rain,
And so many flower petals.

We turn and head back inside
To wait a little longer.

Remember me
Your beloved mother

In the low hours

Whenever you are feeling weak
And have lowered
Your powerful barriers

For it's then I can only be truly seen

Remember me
As that tsunami of furious fire

That once reenergized you
In dark years

When you were alone and tired

To be wholly free

Remember me
By looking at my picture
Of us together

Your now favourite
Black and white one
I sent you

As my holy scripture
That you'll only need

Remember me when you too are old

Standing brightly as the early morning sun

In the darkness of old age

Even though your beloved memories are getting cold

Before God turns your page
So you can fade away

To join me

As the hours and seconds
Run away

Remember me
So I may stay
In some strange spiritual way

To give you comfort

Until you too are recalled
To float away

Someday

Remember me
My poetic love
So I can come to you

In dreams

Walking down to find you
Through the ethereal blue rivers and green

Underground streams

To reach you to swim
Together

Reunited

In the Holy Sea
Until the early morning sunrise

Remember me

As your true spiritual devotion

Who you met in physical flesh

As one
Who wrote down
In a pre-life road map

With a spirit guide
In another
Far away nation

“I want to meet someone so extraordinary

A child of mine

Someone so special to be a member of my own tribe

Who will show me such poetic wonders”

“That my heart will open up its velvety doors and ask to be possessed as it pleads to confess

Before I once more walk
In those heavenly tides
Of the Holy Sea”

And then I suddenly met you at birth

Mesmerised
By all I could see

So that's why I pray
For you
Each night

So you'll remember me
As I wait here

Walking barefoot and alone
In the swirling tides
Of The Holy Sea

Waiting
for the one to love me again

I once wrote down before I was born

The only one I'll ever need

Just remember me

It's why I left this letter in my will

For you
My beloved to read

Just remember me

Your beloved mother
Who loves you like no other

(C)
Copyright John Duffy

Time went by after you left,
The dawn was still cold as i wept,
The daybreak dews matched my tears,
As they fell upon the leaves in sphere.
Sometimes i ponder,
If there could’ve been a wonder,
When you held my hand and told me,
“I will no longer remain here, you see”.
For you knew your death was trailing behind,
Making you wish you could just rewind,
Just to let me hold your hand,
And when i did,
Your hands were cold and blue,
For i have been holding the hands of my mother,
Who had been long gone.

dear mom,

when i was born to a 16 year old, do you think it was my plan to hurt you? to ruin you? i made your life hell, i know. but this was out of my control.
mommy i love you
mommy look im reading
look how smart i am
look how good i am
look how nice i am
look how kind i am
see how tired i am
see how lonely i am
how alone
how sickly
mommy why wont you answer me
have i done something wrong?
i did everything for you.
no matter how hard i tried it was never enough.
when daddy came back to get me
you fought
you genuinely loved me
and i never wanted to see him
i loved you
daddy had left
hurt me
hurt you
but as soon as you won
didnt you cry?
wish i had been taken?
i remember that night you prayed to god for me to go away
how i was hurting you
you were my age when you had me
nearly an adult
adult enough to go to that party
to go find your man friend
to lie and say you coud drink
but what happened?
daddy forgot he hated condoms.
forgot he didnt like consent
yet it was my faut after
im sorry mommy
im sorry i wasnt good enough.
fast forward me 2019
taking it out on my grades and never happy
put on a mask for the parents and bottle up my sorrow study and work til i see the light of tomorrow
suddenly im 13
hardly 3 days clean
picking up scraps and taking pills i cant seem
to pronounce the names of
my grades are slipping
my life crumbling
im turning fifteen in 3 weeks
its like you dont even know me.
like you kept having kids to fil the void
stopl hurting me
i didnt deserve it
i was always good
i did everything to make you happy

love,
Holly

He carries wisdom in his soul,
A heart woven with kindness, honesty, and care.
His presence is a refuge-
A place where I am safe, where I can exhale.

He is gentle, yet strong.
Patient, yet unwavering.
Grounding, yet boundless in his dreams.
With him, I am steady. With him, I am free.

Through him, I see the reflection of love itself.
Brilliant in mind, bold in spirit,
Sincere in his words, fearless in his heart.
His existence is a gift, and I cherish every moment.

But above all, I love who I am beside him.
He lifts me, yet never asks me to be anything but myself.
With him, I am strong.
With him, I am peaceful.
With him, I am selfless.
With him, I am endlessly inspired.

Thank you for giving him life,
For shaping the soul that I now hold dear.
I vow to guard his heart as long as I walk beside him.
To understand him deeply-
His needs, his desires, his hopes, his dreams.

For as long as fate allows,
I will love him wholly,
Not just for who he is-
But for the world he creates within me.

picture this: i'm 11.

new macy's two-piece bathing suit.
i like the colors.
you hate my stomach.

summer.
"why can't i wear my new suit?"
"because nobody wants to see a beached whale."

i do not wear it to the beach.
i dive into our golden lake,
your tongue-blade
muted among the surf.

i am beautifully alone,
but i do not wish to be.
the silence is enough of a gift.

you say "beached whale"
and expect it to hurt,

and it does. but not how you wanted.

i am a beached whale. 16 years later
a creature only meant to observe and love,
i was pushed out of the water,
to drown in your desert air.

i am learning to swim again.

i will break your harpoon.