You have lingered all my life
In the back of my mind or when I close my eyes.
When I smell your perfume or hear that song out of nowhere
You appear like a whiff of fresh air.

It was the summer of ‘92
You had returned from boarding school.
You looked…

That look of me in the mirror
Why is that different from what I expect it to be?

A decade ago I had desired to become this person —
this exact same person.
The hair, the attire, the attitude,
the confidence that I didn’t have back then.
The small town girl with fire…

The smile on your face hiding your tears.
The curves on your lips giving away your fears.

The shouting, the arguments those stormy nights.
You would turn up the radio to drown the fights.

You would come out of the room to check on me,
I caught a glance of…

A long pending massage, to loosen those muscles
that have tangled with the stress of daily duties.

A cup of tea on a quiet rainy afternoon, curled up
with the bestseller that has been on the to-read list.

A walk along the river, listening to soul-stirring music. …

Wake up good people,
Times have changed.
You can walk out and breathe.
Your life matters as much as mine
Any shade of human, not just white.

Wake up
to hear words that are honest
Words that you don’t need to fact check
Words that have been thought through
Not ones that will instigate…

Our family diligently eats dinner together
at our rustic table under a chandelier.
An abstract painting serves as the backdrop
just like a page off a West Elm catalog.
A bowl of salad lies dead on the table,
A slice of cold salmon on everyone’s plate. …