Steph Shuff
poems for past selves
i wanted to give you truth and poetry
we were going to mold beauty from the vain
like Rome
subvert the powers
by giving art
to the masses
title it Obedience
oil on canvas
but that's not oil
it's blood
we know what they've forgotten
those with comfort have everything to lose
you call yourself an agitator?
you cling to harmony
bored
afraid to admit it
the lies come easy and often
i was a lie
i came easy and often
for a time
i'm back to being me again
it's lighter without you
inside skin that is mine
lonely
you were soft in me
seek the truth in art
cower from reality
i could never submit myself
to a god
who lives the li(f)e (s)he mocks
a false prophet to the values that def(y)ine you
shapeless now
you are melting
i weep for you
slip through cracks
in your convictions
out of my life
down the drain
followed closely
by the unwept tears
of the lovers
that you lie to