Sestina

To speak of love is to speak of contradictions.
Contradictions of the heart and mind.
My heart urges me to hang onto your every word while my mind tells me to run,
but love eradicates all notions of logic and reason so I stay and I listen.
My heart is too strong; my mind has no chance in the competition.
So I throw self-preservation to the wind in order to love.

I used to laugh at those foolish girls in the movies, the ones who fell in love.
They seemed to hate the man they loved and their actions and words were complete contradictions.
Hollywood has tricked us into believing that love is a competition,
they have depicted love as requiring games of the mind.
But I wish that I could just make the world listen
because I would tell them not to run.

Perhaps it is because in modern society we are always on the run.
We have no time for others to appreciate and love,
yet we complain that no one will listen.
Sadly, it has become a world of contradictions.
Do we condemn ourselves to loneliness with money in mind?
We do all of this for the sake of competition.


But I am here to tell you that love should not be a confusing competition
Or a struggle, or something to hide from or at the thought of, run.
but rather it should be a refuge and an escape for the mind.
In order to survive we need to breathe, drink, and live in love.
No more contradictions.
Just listen.

You will hear the sound of a heartbeat if only you listen.
Forget about championships, winning, and competition.
Even though love causes conflicts and contradictions,
NEVER RUN.
Use your entire heart to love,
Always keep this advice in mind.

Love should flow naturally, disregard the mind.
Every human being needs someone to listen,
and every human being needs someone to love.
Make this a personal competition:
When love finds you, plant your feet in the ground and refuse to run.
Embrace love, embrace contradictions.


Be a fool in love, those who matter won’t mind.
Accept the confusions and contradictions, look to your heart and listen.
Once you're aware of the banality of competition, discover your own path and only then should you run.

Feminine Masculine Found Poem

The heartbeat of America, Las Vegas.
Bright lights, a flash of fuchsia,
a sparkling pink diamond on the finger of a newlywed
who is just leaving The Chapel of Love.
I work on the Las Vegas strip.
They think I’m only a waitress.
But when I leave the café, I go to The Live Jazz Club
where I perform my voodoo magic behind the microphone.
They all come to hear my one man show: the man in the expensive Calvin Klein suit (Ferrari black), the taxi driver, and the housewife alike.
I put on a mighty mauve dress, I’ve been told that it’s my color
since it compliments my peach parfait complexion.
The dark lights seem even less significant in comparison to my spotlight,
a single stream of light that follows me everywhere,
and the red velvet curtains become my backdrop.
They say that there is no such thing as true love in Sin City
But that is a lie, for music is mine.