My Perfect Forever Poem by Jessie Stowers

I whisper "Stop", in the moonlight I
watch you leave me behind to the company of the stars
"Please" I choke out, I can no longer see you
I never wanted for you to go. And yet
You retreat as if I'd begged to
See my reason for life disappear and now
I fall to the ground, racking with unreasonable sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

You coaxed me in, as if I were a wild animal you
Wanted to pet and you gently whispered in my ear as
Your hands closed around my body and you
Were sweet and made me feel like I
Was the center of a romance unreal and now
I fall to the ground, racking with unreasonable sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

As if you were the streetlamp I sat in your ring of light
Not allowing myself to feel at ease I knew you were no different
And yet; I never stepped out of the circle that encased me in you
I begged myself to make a choice
To let me feel unreal and when
I made the choice I lifted my eyes to stare
Into your burning embers and confidently said "It's done"
And your light lifted around me producing
A sphere of light to hold me To
Guide me And you warmed my soul with
Your care and now
I fall to the ground, racking with unreasonable sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

Proudly I prance and skipped and twirled
Following your light in its embrace To
A world always sunny with
Air that I can breathe in deep and
Occasionally I stumbled and once
Twice maybe I stopped and fell and
Your sphere sometimes dropped It always
Came back up and now
I fall to the ground, racking with unreasonable sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

Often when I stopped my prancing to rest I
Awoke to see you slightly ahead and after
Just a while more I noticed I was almost completely
in the dark and so I
Picked up the pace to step back in your light and
Feel the embrace of your care yet
I could only catch up when I was
Completely out of breath on the verge of collapse and now
I fall to the ground, racking with unreasonable sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

Tonight you and I we had
Stopped moving forward to look at the stars and
You and I we spoke for hours and
I felt like I was being coaxed again into
Something, a world unreal and I dozed off with
A smile kissing my lips and your
Embrace warming my soul and when I
Opened my eyes again my sphere of light was gone
You'd snuck away so suddenly when
All was getting fixed and I rose
To my feet and called after you
I know you heard me because at
The sound of my voice your light
For a second shone brighter than the sun but
Then it dimmed and again you moved on and now
I fall to the ground, racking with unreasonable sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

I whisper "stop", in the moonlight and
I feel my throat burn with fire as you
Fade from view and now I am
Enveloped in darkness that you
Sheltered me from not long ago
But I don't know why you've gone when
I saw when I yelled for you that
I am still what makes your embers turn to fire
"Please" I choke out, now standing still
My attempt to follow you abruptly stopped-
"You know I'm scared of the dark" my voice is barely audible
-because then my legs gave way and now
I fall to the ground, racking with mortified sobs
And I can't breathe anymore.

-Jessie Stowers -16-