I could feel your presence -
passionate, intense like the eye
of a hurricane - just outside the
door.
My fingers hesitated on the
lock for just a moment - a
heartbeat - before letting you
in.
You slipped in, as silent
and light footed as a shadow,
simultaneously locking the door
and,
pushing me against the wall
with your slim body. I folded
beneath the slight pressure of
your
mouth, both urgent and exquisitely,
painfully slow. My breath caught in
my chest, head spinning with
vertigo.
And before I knew it,
you sank to your knees and
began removing my pants with your
teeth.
Sexual Insomnia | Poems that Suck
I think about you late at night,
when I’m trying to fall asleep
which is counterproductive to
relaxation.
.
I think about me stripped
bare beneath you, legs spread
wide in eager welcome and you
inside.
.
There is a feeling of awe
each time you slide into me
and I look down the long length
of you
(to watch).
.
Yet, even though these images
make the vein in my neck throb
I still fall into a deep, peaceful
sleep.
Vindictive Lil’ Vixen | Poems that Suck
Had I known it was going to be the last time that we would kiss, I would've given it everything I had and.... Bit your fucking lip off.
130 over 80 | Poems that Suck
I approached,
cigarette in hand,
offering to share
but,
You squirmed
away from me
with a boyish
grin.
I raised
my eyebrow, arched,
a silent question
mark.
“Every time
you come near
my blood pressure
rises.”
Fertile Valleys | Poems that Suck
You held my hand as we drove through the desert, the parched night air like a ribbon that tangled in our hair. We stopped for a drink in what could've been a ghost town, had it not been for the neon lights wound around and strung between the lampposts. I got something to share with you, a drink, delighted at the thought of our lips sharing the same edge; it was almost as if we were kissing. When I returned to the car you were standing with three other girls - one who was barefoot, her toes blackened by the asphalt. I joined you, but hesitated because I understood that we were in that no man's land between something and absolutely nothing at all. But you somehow sensed my trepidation and slid a reassuring arm around my waist, pulling me close to you and kissing my lips with tenderness. It was in that moment I loved you because I knew I was safe.
حبيبي (Habibi) | Poems that Suck
I miss you -
that's all I wanted to say,
the only message I want to send
out on the ether.
I hope it reaches you,
on your little farm atop the hill.
Beloved: A Poem for Palestine | Poems that Suck
This is the poem that won the Anita McAndrews Poetry Award
There’s a funny story behind this poem:
It was written in January of 2017 – 1 month after I returned from Palestine the first time. It is the product of a class assignment: I had to write a Psalm using non-traditional language and non-traditional versing. I was PISSED that I had to write this (if any of you know me, there’s two parts of the Bible I cannot stand – Psalms and anything Paul wrote). I put it off for a week, grumbling and bitching about having to do it. I was, additionally, experiencing a major depressive episode at the time and just didn’t have the energy to do it. So the night before it was due, I sat down and wrote this.
Funny how life works out, huh?
You can read it here or below:
Beloved:
You called me to the ends of the Earth,
the place where your breath sighs,
so that I might suffer to find
brotherhood.
I met you at every step, the ochre
Judean sands gritting between my
toes as I tried to match you;
heel to toe.
Your spirit whipping my hair, as
I traced the desolate crescendos
of the South Hebron Hills in the dying
winter light.
I have known the fragile weight of you,
destroyed, in my open arms as despair
swallowed me on the rocky shores of
the Kinneret.
Heard your voice transform from singing
in a sumptuous Arabi to the shrill scream
of terror as I stood, useless, on the rooftops:
Al-Khalil.
I have seen your face in its forms of hurt
and healing; bruised purple, smeared with
blood, swollen; the gift of a crazed soldier
or settler.
Smelled the acrid stench of burning wire,
choking me, stinging my eyes as I trudged
knee deep in filth to bring your children
to kindergarten.
Beloved:
You have called to where my heart throbs
thrice: Fal-a-steen -and I can’t ever hope
to rid myself of the land, the people, or
the life.
You invite me, now, to receive you in
the fruit of the vine, to fill myself
with your sacrifice so that I might match you
heel to toe.
Waiting | Poems that Suck
"There's showers here,"
I didn't think much of this information
until I watched you walk toward the building -
each step lingering - hope in every footprint.
You stopped one last time,
at the doors of your destination
and I could feel the glee of your
mischievous grin from across the field.
I found you there, stripped
bare and radiant in your beauty,
waiting for me...
A Promise | Poems that Suck
You were asleep,
laying face down
on top of the tangled
bed clothes.
A Harvest moon hung
low in the sky, peeking
through the window shades
and stretching its golden fingers
of light up the length of your glorious,
nude body. The moment hung in the salty, humid
air, like a promise of what was yet to come.
Untitled | Poems that Suck
"I love you," you called to my retreating back. I wondered if it was exquisite cruelty, or reassurance. Maybe it was a measure of relief for you, Since now, you never have to see me again. Either way, it was a javelin to my (already fragile) heart.
Poems that Suck 