leads one to feel more like a detective than a partner.

Time passes and feelings fade

But it threatens to pull them under
just the same.

They watch a special on TV about a giant catfish
163 pounds, would not want to wrestle this beast -

But somehow they ended up with that assignment.

This war should have never been
the battle lines were clearly drawn
Leave the fish alone
He was happy before you came along.

In the trenches the true test becomes
knowing when to stay and fight
and when to let it all slip away.

So she set out to find him the perfect ones
as she knew she could change his mind.

Never had the chance to buy them, though.

He swore himself beside her unconditionally
but that changed one phone number,
dance floor, and blonde girl later

A year of hell before he realized
she had been his source all along.

If she hadn’t loved him she would not
have taken him back but moments
of weakness (hers) and resolve (his)

led her back to the door of the home
they had chosen together ages ago

She stopped dead in her glee suddenly
repelled as soon as she glimpsed
refrigerator adorned with photos, menus
pictures of blonde woman
had been smartly removed
but blonde woman was all over this.

Now, only silence sits with us,
And not the comfortable one,
At least not on my end.
Making the space between us
Seem like hundreds of miles.

It’s not that we went separate ways.
We still do the exact same things,
Just not with each other,
Just not anymore.

We once considered each other family.
Once we even joked that we married.
Where there was one of us,
The other was never far behind.

Now, you sit in your room
Watching that stupid television show.
Now, I sit in the living room
Playing that stupid video game.

Our paths once ran together,
Like two pieces of a different puzzle,
Fitting together in perfect harmony.
Now, the edges of each piece are seen,
Messily overlapping one another.

It’s sad that we don’t talk, really.
When you think about it enough.
Once we called each other
Friend, Sister, and Wife
Now, we don’t call each other,
Knowing only silence will answer.

————-

See other flour poems here.

Eyes unfocused he saw two realities
she knew she couldn’t fix this man
So she uses the only trick she has left
Waits naked for him, bathing in bubbles

Rules broken and hearts on the mend
She eyes his clock, his paused heart,
begins second guessing everything
but he slips in behind her, holding her

and if forever is a whisper of change away
neither knows if this will be the last time
both hoping for sort of broken beginning
instead of tortured and final goodbye.

————–

Read other clock poems here.

She had created this all for him.
It was an anniversary of sorts.
Not hers and his, she knew.
But it was still important.

He knocked twice before opening the door.
He was early, she was just finishing dinner.
She continued stirring as he walked up behind her.
Her heart began to beat faster as their lips pressed together.

Together they ate, talking quietly around the table.
After, they danced slowly to the soft music.
Then they sat on her plush couch, drinking champagne.
That’s when it all fell apart.

He mentioned her name, in passing.
He mentioned the other woman.
The one she was jealous of.
The one whose anniversary it was.

Quickly, she set the glass on the table.
Quietly, she made her way to the kitchen
Worried, he asked what was wrong.
Swiftly, she stuck the knife into his chest.

He fell back against the cushions,
Eyes staring at her.
Wide with fear and wonder.
He tried to reach out to her.

She ran to the bathroom,
Tears stinging her eyes.
Slamming the door behind her,
She stared at herself in the mirror.

It was what she had to do.
What she needed to do.
What she wanted to do,
Since she found out about her.

She quickly turned the faucet.
Hot and cold water mixed,
Washing over her trembling hands.
She didn’t look up at her reflection.

The blood swirled together with the water.
Creating a dull pinkness in the sink.
She watched the pinkness drain,
Until all the water ran clear.

She added more coloring,
Pulling a small knife across her wrist.
The blood drained out of her and into the sink.
“Now you have to be with me.”

http://poetryassignment.com/2008/12/assignment-blood/

She looked at him in silence, pondering -

Does she take her stand now, leaving him
to choose without her, showing him
she’s the strong one? Or does she pick -
making him think her name every day,
each time he sees a splash of color
out of the corner of his brown eyes?

In the silence they stared deeply
each knowing what was at stake
what had been lost and what
could be found again

She thought of someone else
who must surely have the key
to his door – their door – by now

“Paint it red.”

——–

See other door poems here.

But this morning
She awoke in a dream of he
With another
How could her sister …

It’s April outside should not be
Drowning in hail showers
But she is alone
Has no one to hold

She’ll stay under covers
For just a little bit longer.