Silly or Young
How silly I was then,
Or maybe too young
To see that the darkness on the wall
Was just myself
Reflected.
The wooden night-light
That carved the image of a withered tree
Standing, still in moonlight
That’s what made it bigger
That’s why I was afraid.
So I cowered under covers,
Silly to think my blanket
Could shield me from my monster
Too young to know
I’d never really
Escape it.
***
“Nights Are The Hardest” by Samantha Wong
The Nights Are the Hardest
“The nights are the hardest,” she’d said. She was right.
Night came. So did total destruction.
Dark winds howled, pushed me, dragged me off my perch, down with a thud. Clay skin cracked, pieces of me spread across cold cement floors. Then came the winged creatures. They tore at me, scratching and ripping away until I was exposed. Night came after me, like a chisel, chipping into me until I was bloody and sore.
But in this pain, this sadness, this utter destruction, there’s something hopeful. My brokenness for the first time makes me wonder, What great work of art I am being re-chiseled into? How much stronger might I be when I finally fill in the cracks on my broken, dry skin?
***
There’s Something About December
There’s something about her that catches his eye.
Maybe it’s the playful ways she pulls at the blue string of her
sweatshirt. Or maybe it’s how she blows kisses to strangers or
keeps her hair in front of her face.
Perhaps it is her eyes – icy blue like his favorite freezer pop that
comes in the plastic. She was cold. She was cruel. She was his
perfection and the stick thin object of my disdain.
***
These poems by Nina Brav are from the book Love and Other Monsters by Kay B., Nina Brav, and Michelle Bishop, published by Blue Fae Press, a Division of Urban Book Editor LLC. The art for “Nights Are The Hardest” is owned by Samantha Wong. All work copyright © 2016. Used by permission.
***
Born and bred in the South, Nina Brav now lives and works in Boston. Her writing features themes around love, brokenness and the healing process, and magical realism. You can learn more about Nina Brav at Anina Production or by following her on Instagram @NinaBrav.
