the labored

breath

moistened

at the threshold

a dreadful

utterance,

coiled

and yearning

thrusted

beyond

a holy veil

a hallowed womb

a garden of

snow-laden grief

the bounds

of desolation

a mere container

for this weary heart

that thirsts

upon waking

this barbed wire earth

that claimed my

sanguine heart

and married tears

to concrete

grow the most

beautiful

flowers

how desolate

the frayed landscapes

of wounds

that adorn

flesh in ochre, crimson

blushed, bitten

a fleeting confection

A ghost dressed is stars

and spines

splayed in reverence

trailed snakeskin

in the garden, an altar

this barbed wire earth

that claimed my

sanguine heart

and married tears

to concrete

grow the most

beautiful

flowers

how desolate

the frayed landscapes

of wounds

that adorn

flesh in ochre, crimson

blushed, bitten

a fleeting confection

A ghost dressed is stars

and spines

splayed in reverence

trailed snakeskin

in the garden, an altar

To pluck

the weeds of

your body

is to unfurl

the ribbons

of sorrow that

made them root

and cast them

to the stars

I miss you like Autumn;

sepia-stained

bedsheets that

carried us into

purgatory

upon wretched sea

That look

in your eyes

reaching out

to touch me

Me, once a stranger

to those eyes

whose lips

remind me

of the stranger in mine

I yearn to feel

your fingers

take root

inside me

seeking nourishment

sowing the seeds

of rapture

at season's end

May her wrath

be her love

divine and tender

her name

of fiery cadence

spoken by

the tongues

of bloodied men

who bask

in the heaven

of her stars

Oh bloody one

aching heart

of humankind

deep crimson

and sorrowful

jewels that crown

darkness, an empress

fertile is the night

that bears witness

to the holy touch

of ancient love

forbidden love

her tender touch

that bleeds

and bites

and caresses

deep, red rivers

that flood

from veins

down her legs

from your lips

a blessed stain

under winter sky

in barren field

I am torn flesh

of consequence

lain bitter

and numb

winter’s child;

the fruit bore

from anguish,

bruised,

yearning

the vestiges

of sun

glory to

its fleeting cruelty

glory be

thy jagged halo

I cast myself

in the mirror

like a ghost

birthed from

candlelight

uttered out

of hiding by

each flicker

the cruel crackling

uncontained

embodied

I am words

spoken

into sweetness

upon satan’s tongue

like honey

or temptation

falling

into

your

palms

for you to lap up