Dear You, whoever you may be,

wherever you are, you made it. This moment,

your best friend, has waited its

whole life to embrace you.You made it.

The necktie dangles from the ceiling

but it has forgotten how to embrace you.

The razor blades, pieces of pencil

sharpener, and box cutters are all

disintegrating into brown orange rust

in a hellish black box under lock and key . . .

Dear You, this is you, you who has memorized

every etch and scratch on

the bathroom walls of a bar

through lenses blurred by tears;

who has your scars

that you say are from cats

or falling on fences, or bruises from

“bumping into table corners”,

and for you, who has seen the light

and then reluctantly

come back to darkness.

Some people say that character

is a photograph that develops in

darkness, but sometimes

the dark develops too much of our character

and we become over-saturated,

entering the light with smudges and scars.

Other times darkness comes

and the photo’s true colors don’t blossom

and turn into the art they should. But you --

you made it.

Today is another chapter of the legacy

that is your life, a hallelujah, an amen of sorts

People say, that no one cares how you look

more than you, but we don’t always

see the beauty on the outside

because when we look closely at a mirror,

we are searching for the wrong things

and the lines around our eyes and mouths       

are nothing but memories of smiles

scrapbooked, cemented into the

skin on our faces. Regardless of all
your little flaws, you are you,

and one day someone will

stare into your eyes and kiss your lips

you are the most beautiful person

and truly believe that you --

to ever walk the Earth.

This is for when you’re feeling like shards

of glass rather than a stained glass window

Believe me when I tell you this --

your scars will heal, and your

bruises will fade like the sound

of your tears on the cold bathroom floor

You made it,

You made it.

and today, I will love you like no other

today the three years’ pain is over

today you will remember how to love yourself

today you again will hold the light you were

so ashamed of before

today... today...

Dear You,

it was always you

you are someone’s favorite voice

someone’s favorite face to hold

and your arms are someone’s refuge. . .  

someone’s home.

You are a soldier, and it’s time to come home.

nothing would be the same,

If you -- yes, I mean you

didn’t walk the Earth where and when you did

the supernovas and nebulas would have no

beauty to compete with,

I wouldn’t be able to clap and jump  

when you dance like a glaring sparkler against

the black sky but the pain is gone today, you made it!