My hair curls like black roses. In
The heat, I find repose. Suppose,
I might not have known such sorrow
And strife, I could never begin
To live my life. I crossed the valley of death and shame
Where black roses bloom in wild abundance.
I grabbed many off the highway
To remember the pain someday
Of thistles and thorns; much stronger
Than those on a rose colored red.
I had many once. Such grief. I gave
Of them too freely. I played a zero
Sum game. Too much tension in my
Own damn brain. I remember
The days when loving seemed easy.
Wake up in the morning to find
You there sleepy, steal a kiss on your
Forehead, you smiled so sweetly.
I figured it out, I had it unlocked.
A blur of a thought to what came next.
I lost you due to deep-seated frustrations at
Myself and my past which dissolves
Beneath me. Now I’ve got wounds that
Penetrate deeply. To heal now takes forever
And a day, the process of a journey.
Black roses now bloom around my red;
Beauty of strife so mirrored in death,
New life finds itself growing again.