words as meaning

singing songs in elementary school
was my favorite thing to do
i looked forward to the day, every year
where i could be loud
and it was beautiful
not annoying

my music teacher
had us sing a song
with the word 'gay' in it
'it's okay if you guys don't want to sing that word,'
she said,
'it used to mean happy, now it means...
something else.'

we still sang it.
because we were little
and didn't know what the
'something else'
was

and even if we did
would it matter?

the meaning behind our words
can be hidden behind layers
and layers
of irony and sarcasm and metaphoric walls

or plain as plain.

maybe the meaning of  some words
is hidden from us
for reasons we don't know
or don't care about
for the weight they hold
in a society obsessed
with using them correctly

they forget
words aren't a science
they are an art
at heart.

i could listen to you forever

i walked
with the wind
blowing my short hair
into my eyes

i looked
both ways
before crossing
the street

the world is golden
the sun lowering
onto the tops
of buildings

i arrive at one
the library
through its doors i find warmth
in the absence of the cold wind

i am early
and to my surprise
you're already sitting there
and i realize i'm not so surprised

i like this budding routine
we sit there, talking
you talked for forty minutes straight
and i wasn't once bored