Have a Blessed Christmas!

Nativity at the Parish of St. Joseph the Worker (detail)

For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
- Luke 2:11 (New King James Version)

Wishing you and everyone you hold dear a very Blessed Christmas filled with love, peace, and joy.

Rage and Release

Artwork: Poison Control 1 - Kenichi Hoshine, date unknown

fighting

for my

life:

tearing out,

tearing away,

tearing apart

the very

fabric

of my

grief.

unraveling

threads of

anger,

frustration,

self-loathing

and then

some -

i will

break

out of

this

cocoon

and

emerge

fiercer,

stronger,

braver

than i

have ever

been.

i will

shatter

my fragile

self

and make

room

for the

new

me.

when that

day comes:

i feel

sorry

for anyone

who gets

in

my

way.

Lamb to the Slaughter

Artwork: The Island - Thylacine - Walton Ford, date unknown

my hands

are tied;

am bound

in chains

dragged

to parts

unknown

like a

lamb

to the

slaughter

my spirit

broken,

my heart

in shreds;

nothing

to live

for,

nothing

to die

for.

nothing

is left

for me.

muzzled,

silenced,

beaten,

hated,

spat upon

with savage

vituperation

from all

sides -

reviled

by all

who know -

or knew -

me best.

maybe

in death

i will

find

peace.

Secret Self

Artwork: Tsukuyomi - Hiromi Sato, date unknown

i write

notes

to my

secret self

and tell

her

who i

want,

who i

wish,

who i

need

to be.

under cover

of darkness,

under cloak

of shadow:

our conversations

consist

of blighted

hopes,

ruined

dreams,

forlorn conclusions

of silly

experiments,

mundane matters

of the

heart.

but i

still see

myself

growing into

her:

becoming

stronger,

braver,

wiser,

more beautiful.

someday,

i will

have no

need

to speak

to my

secret self.

when that

day comes

she and i

will be

one

and

the

same.