A Poem a Day...

I've been writing a lot--almost a poem every day, sometimes more than one, sometimes other things. It's mostly rambling and scribbles (sometimes I will actually just scribble for a while). Most of it is crap, and the rest is usually too personal for me to be comfortable releasing to the internet. However, I have a few gems I'd like to share. Here is one of them.

Don’t ask me to let you go.

I will not do it now.

I will let you go when we’ve lived

this out, this grinding,

future-driven life. I will

let you go when eternity shines

from the tunnel’s light behind us.

I will let you go when I can’t help

but have forgotten who we are.

Don’t ask me before we have watched

the sun set

and the stars break through

black curtains of the night.

Don’t ask me

before the actors bow

and the lights come up for good.

I won’t do it unless

the children are grown;

we’ve taken care of it all.

Don’t ask me to watch you leave

before the end has come.

Music Inspiration (part deux)

Back in '11 (wow that feels weird to say), I posted a list of songs I listened to while writing. I've stopped listening to almost every song on that list in the past year and a half, so I thought I'd make a new one. Partially due to the influence of friends and the fact that 80% of the music I currently listen to comes from my roommate's computer, I walk a fine line between obscure and top 40's. You have been warned...

Die Young - Ke$ha
All Time Low - The Wanted
If You Only Knew the Rain - Balmorhea
Let Me Die - the Classic Crime (and pretty much all of Phoenix, really)
All I Want - Kodaline
Evening Ceremony - Active Child
Sugar, We're Goin Down - Fall Out Boy
Work - Jimmy Eat World
Hurt - Johnny Cash
For Blue Skies - Strays Don't Sleep
Migraine - Twenty One Pilots
More Than a Feeling - Boston
I'm Lost Without You - Blink 182 (and I Miss You, and All The Small Things, but come on duh)
Rushes - Lowercase Noises
The Harold Song - Ke$ha
(actually just everything by Ke$ha)
Oblivion - M83
You and I - Washed Out
You and I - Nero
You and I - Lady Gaga
You and I - Future of Forestry
(okay you can ignore the last two I was on a roll)
Disenchanted - My Chemical Romance (*tear*)
Closer - Kings of Leon
I Write Sins Not Tragedies - Panic! At The Disco
The Unwinding Cable Car - Anberlin
Don't Fear (the Reaper) - Blue Oyster Cult
Holding On To You - Twenty One Pilots
Try - P!nk
Just Give Me a Reason - P!nk & Nate Ruess
Silent Lucidity - Queensryche

BONUS FOREIGNERS:
Je Veux Te Voir - Yelle
Wenn du mich brauchst - Fertig, Los!

Poetry Updates

I've been working over the last few months to build up my poetry files, as I was not happy with the majority of the work I had done so far. Many of the pieces I've written remain unedited, but I think staying consistent with my output has been good.
Here's a small selection of things I have written (again--short and unedited--please don't judge quality) recently, since I haven't had anything to post in a while.

-----

explain to me

how life is so valuable

when it can be taken away for free

-Explain to Me

-----

switchblade, up and out,

don’t pierce my throat.

don’t bleed my mouth.

handle, gripped too tight,

you twist and thrust

in the dark’ning night.

ending, shamed release,

deep inside.

cannot keep.

walk away, you knew you would.

don’t look at me—

don’t think you could.

-The Metaphor

-----

cycle through the waters

your skin’s peeling away

play me another song now

.

paring every head now

such hard and sticky fruit

parts I can’t replace for you

.

less than they could want

tightening rings around the sea

claim it for your own now

.

cycle through the waters

your heart’s fading away

sing me soft to sleep now

don’t let us fall astray

-Oceans (For the Poor In Spirit)