LINDA M. CRATE

 

LINDA M. CRATE

 

Painting Yourself The Hero

 

you spill over the edges

of my periphery,

and i wish that i didn't

see you;

don't need you in my mind's eye

because i was never on your mind

only wanted the dream of me not the reality—

i wish i could cut your name out of me

because it carved a bitterness

on my heart,

and no matter how many pomegranates

i throw away there always seems

to be another one waiting to stain me

in a purple tongue;

thought we had our last dance when you left

i can say you're dead to me but there

are some days where you still live—

i wish i hadn't spent so many days hating myself,

took me forever to realize that i wasn't the

monster but you were;

i saw myself as ugly when you were the

ugly one—

married the woman you cheated on me with,

and it made me feel inadequate;

but you were just a bridge i was meant to burn

without looking back because there would be no

growth in holding the hands of a man

who fancies himself a hero when he's the villain

he paints you to be

-linda m. crate

 

I Won't Thank You For Your Cruelty

 

you wanted a maiden,

instead you found a queen;

you wanted someone

without power

instead you found a woman who

knew her power—

didn't appreciate my song

although yours were always

off key,

didn't appreciate my magic

because it was better than yours;

wanted to devour me with all your teeth

but found that i was never someone

you could kill—

saw me as worthless because

you couldn't afford to pay what i was worth,

so in the end i was the one that won and you're the

one that will never know happiness;

you're always looking for the next best thing

i learned at young age to appreciate what i had—

never needed you just wanted you,

but it turns out that was a mistake;

oh well—

bridges can always be burned,

i had adventures and lessons to learn;

and i am stronger for having been broken by you

yet i'll never thank you for your cruelty.

-linda m. crate

 

Yet In My Flaws I Have Beauty

 

i'll never let the magic die,

my wings aren't yours to tame;

nor are my fangs yours

to trim

 

all my galaxies are meant to burn brightly

every sky is meant to hold sunsets,

rainbows, and sunrises as i so will it—

 

won't let you crack the stained glass windows

of my dreams like you cracked the

wooden doors of the garden gate to my heart,

and i won't let you destroy who i am

because i am a force to reckoned with;

 

not someone you can just throw away

because you're bored—

 

i am not trash,

and you are no

treasure;

 

you make me the villain in your story

but you're the villain in mine—

 

perhaps neither of us are heroes,

but at least i'll admit that i'm not perfect;

yet in all my flaws i have beauty

 

no one will ever change that.

-linda m. crate

 

LINDA M. CRATE

 

Linda M. Crate:  Her works have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies both online and in print. She is the author of seven poetry chapbooks, the latest of which is: the samurai (Yellow Arrow Publishing, October 2020). She's also the author of the novel Phoenix Tears (Czykmate Books, June 2018). She has published four full-length poetry collections and three poetry micro collections.