I used to take pencils
And throw them at the dotted ceilings
Of so many classrooms
Never knowing that the lead
Drew a picture every time

I used to purse my lips
And smirk
Before I knew that
I had a voice with which to speak out

I used to be enveloped
In the freedom of naivety
Before I grew up and smelled
The allure of knowledge

A painting may be a thousand words
but a thousand paintings can't paint her
A flower living off her own sunlight
A broken mirror that reflects inner beauty

Now all I've got are photos
Some sepia, digital, black and white
Though the colours don't really matter
Because my heart is black and blue

The memory in my camera
Is smaller than my memory of you
I remember everything that you do
And I'll never delete it.

Now, you're just in a picture frame,
And I need a new frame of mind.

I have these
pictures in my head
that give me a road map
to the life I want to have.
I saw you last night and
you were with me at the bar
sitting across from me
and in that moment
I saw one of those
faint pictures that
I don't often
come across.

There are things I need to tell you,
Like how the moon orbits just for you.
Or why weeds grow between flagstones.
But all I can say is nothing at all.

There are sounds I need you to hear,
Like the crashing of the waves on New Jesery shore.
Or a nightingales song breaking the sound of silence.
But I know you wont hear them

There are beautiful pictures I need to show
Like the breaking dawn across an island bay.
Or the spring sun, dappling a forest floor.
But I know you wont look in the places I do.

When you asked why I wanted you too?
All I could say was, tis how I see the world.

© Nick Strong 2014