Rhymes - 3. Why We Fight

No raised voices,

Objects don’t fly.

Words escape

In barely a whisper.

It’s a change in the tone of your voice:

A slight sigh,

As if there is relief

In disaster.

Silence pervades the empty air,

And conversation ceases.

Yet something flares

Deep within,

And feasts on every doubt.

Every mistake we ever made,

Guilt binges.

We fling sharp edges

At the mirror

And cut ourselves on

Our own words.

Because we’re afraid.

And every doubt we ever had

And every hurt we ever felt.

Every time we felt on the outside,

Growing up wasn’t easy.

Because, it’s unreal

How you make me feel so whole.

Because sometimes,

I see the light in your eyes

As I lay beside you.

And I watch it flicker and die

As you try to distance yourself

From heartbreak that has yet to happen.

And sometimes

I have low expectations of myself,

But I see the way you look at me:

Not the hand-me-down I feel

But a shiny mint-condition.

I’m sorry I don’t come with an exchange policy.

No returns and no refunds.

So when you take apart this exterior,

Might you run?

Maybe toss me aside and call me a fraud?

I know why we fight:

You’re afraid and I’m afraid.

You’re afraid that you’re not enough,

And I, that you deserve better.

But there are moments,

When you smile and I laugh

And you’re lying next to me,

The hairs on your chest tickling my fingertips,

That maybe, just maybe,

We could finally believe that

We’re good enough.