My sister’s cookies
Chocolate chip
Got my nephew to
Say her name
For the first time

A noisy restaurant
Listen
Focus
Beyond the dishes
The music

Didn’t they know
that people cared?
That they were loved?
Why didn’t someone
tell them?

Water
Beach pools and fountains
Rivers creeks and waterfalls
The sound The feel
Floating Weightless

Filler words
Put me to sleep
Added to cushion
Take away my pillow
Blunt words to wake up

I look away
Afraid to see
Flicker of nerves
In their eye
A clench

I love to hear poetry read
Rather than performed
I love to hear each word
Appreciated
Rather than memorized

Clinical smells
Polite strangers
The only thing worse
Than being here
Is to not be able

I’ve known
Deep inside
All along
My value
That I matter

Manos fuertes
No me sueltan
De la cama
Yo les digo
Me tengo que ir