Truth be told

I had to say goodbye,
not because of what was said
but because of the unsaid.
Your words just never materialized,
and words being as they are,
the lifeblood of my being,
I began to die from the lack of them.
Long ago, I knew your words so intimately,
but then they remained frozen,
resting frigidly on the tip of your tongue.
And even though I trusted you in earnest
with the conviction of a true believer,
you stopped being as you were,
the truth and spirit in you unrecognizable,
just a breath away from mine.
Your silence flooded my body,
and I was drowned by words
that never surfaced.
You felt empty to me
like ashes in somber refrain.
And the wind took you quietly away from me
on a path that never belonged to me.
It was in that moment I realized
we were never meant to be
because real love speaks
from deeply buried places
and never runs out of words.

© 2023 Michelle Cook


Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/woman-mysterious-field-road-meadow-5718089/

Futility

Through tides
that pull me away
somehow
you always stay

I’d do anything
to reach that shore
always wanting you
so much more

Instead I drift
as close as I can
weary from time
and it’s distant plan

Why can’t the waves
crash in my favor
and bring me closer
to what I savor

© 2023 Michelle Cook


Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/girl-sitting-jetty-docks-boardwalk-1822702/

Times Square Travails

And then suddenly you were gone
like the rustling of crumpled leaves
fading against the backdrop
of a saturated city

My sails became limp and lifeless
hanging threadbare
against Times Square temptations
leaving me with a melancholy mindset
in the midst of a cosmopolitan dream

Manhattan meanderings
simultaneously stifled
an adventure left orphaned
under clouds full of finality

A meteor shower of emotions
enhancing the dimly lit depression
causing a crater of convictions
to overflow and seep into the crevices
flooding my ever-dispirited heart

© 2023 Michelle Cook


Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/illustrations/ai-generated-woman-rain-night-wet-8020990/

Just reflecting

Do you ever wonder why things
can’t be as they were
Time always changes things
and causes such a stir

People eventually change
and that’s because everyone grows
still I miss the old ways
and change I do oppose

I miss when my kids were little
the times of simple bliss
now the world has gotten so hectic
everything’s amiss.

I struggle with the here and now
and the moments way back then
still knowing I’d never want to do
all those years again

As great as they really were
life was hard then too
I guess I need to remember that
whenever I’m feeling blue

One never really thinks
about the day their children will leave
and it’s sad when they forget you
It’s something you forever grieve

I know my very own parents
probably feel the exact same way
but the distance makes it harder
and so we drift away.

And friends are difficult to follow
everyone’s here and there
but there’s only one of me
though I’d love to be everywhere

And now that I am older
I find myself learning to be still
sinking into the background
not looking for a thrill

Still I am very happy
and maybe more content than most
but very humbly I say that
for I’d never want to boast

I do enjoy my life though
and yet some days are still so sad
but they’re few and far between
and for that I’m really glad

And today I’m just reflecting
missing those who’ve gone afar
and I think I’ve come to accept
I have to leave them where they are

© 2023 Michelle Cook


Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/young-woman-meadow-lie-relax-girl-2194038/

Alone

Alone is a place
I know so well
It’s the place I dream
The place I dwell

It gets dreary in here
And I get scared of the dark
But my flame isn’t extinguished
You should see my spark

People pass by
But they cannot see
All the color of life
Right inside of me

Come take a look
You’ll see that it’s true
I have a heart
Just like you

© 2023 Michelle Cook


Photo credit: @Lanazi00