do not call on my strength.
do not reflect the steely hardness in my eyes.
do not reward the roughness of my hold as we chafe against each other.
do not drink in the firmness of my inflection.
do not lap up the bitter taste of my words.
do not sing praise to my withering stare.
do not applaud my clenched fists.
instead,
instead.
appeal to my softness,
draw out the saltine tears that refuse to well up,
run your hands along my skin; go on,
discover the dimples of my flesh,
hear the tremble in my modulation,
taste the vulnerability on my lips,
open my palms and sand down the calluses,
to be hard is effortless.
it takes everything,
everything.
to remain soft,
let me be soft.
-I cry when I'm angry
