-- Shut Wide Open --

i believe in flying hearts and praying lips. i believe that magic can overcome evil and love can become magic and that when the world stops turning, we will be shaken out like the last penny from the piggy bank and turn to stars before we hit the ground.

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i sleep when the sun comes up and laugh when the mountains swallow it. i play catch-and-release with the fireflies and butterfly-nets-won’t-hold-me with my dreams. i choke fears into silence and slap inhibitions into the spotlight. i let it all go and watch it ride the wind like a river leaf, counting the things i thought mattered right before they fall off the edge.

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i twist words until they mean what i imagine they should, bend phrases backwards until they are steaming the mirror with their breathless laughter. i pick apart the parts of quotes i like and leave the rest to get eaten up like bread crumbs with the birds. i steal what you want and give what i need, tearing them down the middle and taping the two pieces together so we are both sides of one paper heart.

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i braid my hair with lilies and run barefoot in wheat fields, wear worn-out jeans and howl with the wolves when the desire strikes me. i race deer and ride horses and sing songs i’ve never heard before at the top of my lungs. i drive my truck too fast and dance too slow, hide flashlights in closets and write poems about the time i thought i fell in love.

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i believe in inhaling, not exhaling. dreaming, not sleeping. living, not existing.
i believe in breaking bones, memories, hearts and pride until my eyes are finally shut wide open.