#katpoem

[copper-marigolds]

The Birds

152nd and US1, 7:00 AM on Friday

This is like a scene from The Birds

And it has always been scary,

And it has always been mine.

  Grackles mob the telephone wires while

You’re waiting forever for the light to change

They fly in hordes

And move in clouds

  I’ve learned not to open the windows

Though, by now, I am used to the chaos,

And, yet, I am not on the bus.

And, yet, I am not in the car.

  I have moved on from all this

And from the life that I

I knew and loved and hated

To something so scary—a life of my own. 

[copper-marigolds]

Fight Like Mad

Years depart in madness,

The same way they arrive

Overwhelming, overpowering,

An energy which brings a chance

  A chance to break free

Of habits and standards

That fear would force you to endure

Over this annual test of will

And I’m gonna fight like mad

  Cause I don’t want another year

Of dating jocks who pretty much

Live off of Mountain Dew

And the rush of road rage

I don’t want another year

Trying to impress anyone.

  But the crack of fireworks

Against the sky

Shouts that life is stunning

And, even as these lights turn to ashes,

I’ll still resolve to seek adventure,

Instead of dating quarterbacks.

[copper-marigolds]

Starlight

Swirls and curls on an indigo sky

There’s so much to say about

A night so alive

  Starlight—splattered on

With split-open glow sticks

Illuminate our skies and minds

  I can’t say whether this is real,

But it feels so true

That nothing else dare matter

  There’s enough life in tonight

To relight our eyes

With a passion that’s all but forgotten

  And heaven help me if my love for you

Isn’t as bright as the heavens are

And when the sun sets on the pacific

  Perhaps you’ll know how you feel, too.

[copper-marigolds]

Ant Colonies

You were the second best choice

That I could’ve made

This semester.

And I’m so glad I chose you

  Over focusing on my classes,

Having my roommate

Stay,

Becoming someone I’m proud of,

Working through my anxiety,

Or studying.

              But

None of this is your fault

            I didn’t have to fall

Quite. So. Hard.

            For you.

  I don’t even know

Why I did.

  I guess you captured my heart

When you captured my interest:

  Like when you told me that ant colonies

Have been known

To wage war with each other,

            You blew my mind.

  But was it nothing, did I

Convince myself, and lie?

To find love when there was none?

  Or did I peel the fruit before it was ripe?

Did I tire from sprinting

While running long-distance?

  Perhaps I knew, though you were cute

And smart,

That you were arrogant, too.

  But I never would’ve pegged you

As a liar.