i.
Food brings the heart home,
the mind closer to comfort,
and defines oneself.

ii.
It's so easy to pass out
compliments like candy
to children, yet three times
more difficult to utter
"I'm sorry,"
casting aside faults
and recycling relationships.

iii.
Once, I thought it was a small furball
barking at us on top of an incline
tree stump because we invaded its territory
(and I wondered how it got up there,
and if it got its identity confused),
but it was really a squirrel,
its tail erect with its muzzle
pointing to the sky,
chirping like a bird
desperate for someone to listen to it.

iv.
I'm afraid
that you will know so much more
about me than I know myself
that we end up trading our souls
once the spoken vows bind us together.

v.
Be a cat, arch your back.
Let blood quickly circulate
around your temples and settle
at the soles of your feet.
Breathe deep, then exhale,
letting air, water, oil, and dirt
mingle like old college buddies
of a fraternity/sorority
before you plunge into gravity
like a meteor falling from the sky
and getting swallowed by the sea
(or a black hole).