now and then

This was written for a competition where we were required to write vignettes in response to a current popular song based on a sonnet written. The song selected was "Born To Die" by Lana Del Ray

i.

through opaque crystal

I sift through dreams, what was

what now is

what seemed forever a mix

of dreams embraced,

free of inhibition

rests a life forgotten

put on hold,

bound with yesteryear’s spirit

that hummed sweet nectar

when hopes were at once eternal

now expunged

ii.

I trek down many paths

particularly ones emblazoned

with your curse

I tried to reform

taste the feral journey,

though it screams so

in all appearances

boys like me don’t hatch

from the typical nest-egg

we trade souls

hiss secrets to be liked, craved

so that in the night air’s bustle,

you desire more

only the high of you

gets me off

satiates heroin hearts

does not hesitate

to transform and become

what you spell out

in amour’s curse

I sing hoarsely

“it’s not the end,

but I perish in Autumn’s amber”

iii.

the outcome is always the same

I always dreamed it would be me

that Heaven would embrace those

that fought through trenches

living out the now in future’s folly

but you can never return

to an innocent past

where hard work, determination

paid dues for those who rasterized

internal worlds now guilty

in slackened acceptance

your body listless

at the foot of the bed

a slash of crimson

where there ought to be a bow

I Loved You Then As I Do Now

* This piece was created for a contest. Most people know I do not write rhyme, unless it is eternal, because I suck at it, but somehow in this challenge, I was given specific meter requirements, and was told how the syllables should sound in the sonnet itself, and something clicked. I am getting a warm reception writing out of my comfort zone, so I was just excited to share!

** Rhyme scheme: abbaabba cdcdcd (iambic pentameter)

I Loved You Then As I Do Now

Though life’s travails can break a turtle dove
Kaleidoscopes deny the trickster’s verse
We stay together through the journey's curse,
And rise to hold each other’s heart in love
We recognize the lessons taught above
Connection sealed in passion’s wealthy purse
Concealed embraces we reserve, rehearse
Like hands that snugly fit in leather gloves

Our Heaven dwells on Earth not in the sky
The miracle of blooming buds in May
And pleasures shared when hopes learn how to fly
Sweet tenderness defies the need to stray
You changed my tears of pain from wet to dry
Illumination clears our paths each day