“Secret” and “A Box from the Storage Shelf”

Secret

the gate creaks open 
beckoning.

pavement turns 
      to rubbery mulch 
      When we enter. 

silent

save for the creak 
of Swings 

black

but for the colors 
      on the slide
       and the rusty play truck.

we 
	   swing 
			           swing
towards the stars 
and the blinding orb
and we’re ready to end the adventure when

a new door creaks.
another wonderland 
           of unseen familiarity 

we venture in. 
no concern that we stepped
To the next layer of hell.
dark
and quiet.
and maybe we’re trapped

it charmed us.
the way an old fairytale 
charmed its reader.
 

we spin
         spin
      spin 
         until our thoughts clear 
in a foggy haze
And Time stops 
breathless and beautiful. 

we  climb 
and climb
until our souls 
are trapped
atop the
playground
structure

forever.

A Box from the Storage Shelf

falls open when you least expect. 
	    heart beats faster. 
	    chest tightens and 
A flush rises to warm
 	    your aghast face as you  
Swallow the remembrance:
	   regret. clouding
	   judgment. lost
	   by time. passed in 
	   wondering. if what you did 
was wrong.
or if it was inevitable. 
         (Contents spill)

	 (The barbie you begged your friends for because your friend liked it)
you know you were young
                     (A needed bracelet you traded the rainbow loom for)
	   and foolish
			        (The valentines card from the girl you turn down)
		      and didn’t know better
				            (The Xbox controller your brother wishes you’d pick up)
			        and it was middle school
					                (the ‘C’ in math you hid from your family)
				             or exam time of highschool
						                    (the family photo after you yelled at your parents)
					                  the summer your grandmother died
								                (the tattered-spined HP books)
							              before jk rowling was problematic

you know you’re not that person
	    anymore.
		        She was still learning
		        She believed she knew the secrets of the world
		        She thought she read all the book she could read 
But you would rather forget her. 
	  You don’t let yourself look through that box of stuff.
You force your mouth to
          Stop quivering
          and shove that box back into the storage
And keep walking.