Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Walls




Walls

I keep my walls up pretty high.
Over the years they’ve gotten sturdier;
with every bump, dent, heartbreak
they have strengthened.

Today my barriers are heavyset,
the result of being reminded
of a particularly bad break
and the subsequent crying thereafter.

Coat collar and scarf hide my face,
eyes fixed to the ground,
headphones locking me in to myself.
I walk into the coffee shop
and straight to the restroom.
I hang my purse on the hook
and my eyes catch the wall.
A chalkboard strip runs around
the four walls and contains words and phrases
from customers, strangers,
written to uplift, inspire, cause a laugh.
U Are Awesome thnx 4 bringing earth light!
Pancake Snowflake Earthquake Milkshake!
Baby it’s cold outside.
I read the walls, smile, feeling better.

I order brightly at the counter,
then smile at a man
while slipping past his table to my seat.

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Here's the short poem I wrote to calm myself down this morning. Writing things down always helps me. I made the graphic too.





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