Waiting

The cool wind breezes past my bare skin
My arms breaking out in goosebumps
As my cheeks flush in the chill,
My stomach drops, for I realize
The height of my suspension

These clouds below my feet
Have all the qualities of my heart
Moving quickly, ever changing shape
This rushing feeling in my chest
Never slowing its pace or flow

And I, the origin, sighing
For I put myself here at this height
Suspended above my world
Unable to see your eyes or smile
Unable to read what lies beneath

As I struggle to find the meaning, the words
The clouds seem further away, tinier
Until I reach that height
Where I can no longer breathe the air
And my mind leaps into survival mode

How can I come back down to you
If I can't seem to remember the earth
The muddled smell of people,
The sticky feel of the mud,
The slow curve of your hand on my hip,
Like fog blanketing quickly over the forested hills.

The Other

I remember feeling like liquid
My fingers and toes
The tips of a powerful swell
Crashing itself against the rocks
I never knew a subsiding calm
Only the undertow

The worry knot pulsates within me
Growing larger every time
If I look in his eyes
If I touch his cheek
If I hear him say my name

He’s starting to see
That which is the other
Deeply hidden, afraid of company
It secretly yearns to be seen
Yet with each step into the light
It shivers with cold
And covers itself with sandpaper