jeremiah ray life – One Breath Poetry

the mirror must seem empty;
a line cast into water
in which
i no longer swim.

then we would run
and be free
our words would become a song
an endless song
of just a few words
we have lost ourselves in words
when just one will fulfill us

I awoke, and I was alert as if I had always been conscious. It was a strange feeling to be there, to be present. I lay in bed, looking at the painting. I wanted to know what language you were thinking in when you painted it. Or maybe no language. Perhaps it was a babbling stream of thoughts connected only by your personal history, ideas that wouldn’t add up to anyone else. Thoughts tethered together by the tiniest of threads strung together in perfect fragility.

the stargaze lilies are back
i remember them
held in candlelight
only in candlelight
i remember nights
held in humidity
only in humidity

oh where oh where oh where oh where
that is how this poem starts
in my mind.
i asked myself, ‘do you recall
where you left that emotion?’
but i couldn’t.
so i just bought time
trying to wait it out
by asking,
oh where oh where oh where

this
hold as whole
within one
two becoming one
one without
now gone

i am torn up
ragged
but there is pleasure
still to give
there is love
still here
to enjoy

i placed delicate lily petals
on the floor
and lit candles.
the light crept around
the darkness,
along with the sounds of summer
and the heat –
such heat.
i can’t remember your taste,
a memory i can leave
in the past,
but the lily petals,
how they curl inward,
flesh toned and sensual,
they remind me
of who i was –
of who i am –
even as i willingly
release memories of you.

the dust of
the past

still
underneath

our nails