Dulcis in Fundo

Tell me
what makes you sad -
Christmas decorations 
after February,
the sudden youthful light 
in my grandmother's eyes,
the smell of summer,
the taste of yellow paint,
and the sweet dusty air
of quaint candy shops
bringing me back
to a time of simple smiles.

I will tell you
about the space
between the hallucination
and the daydream -
where we can use our spoons 
to crack open a storm
and find the rainbows,
where moments of joy
stick to my fingertips 
like blood and chocolate,
where I know the answer
to every thunderous question
rolling away in my mind.
I will tell you 
about the place
between the fever 
and the fairytale -
where the walls 
are made of gingerbread 
and there are madeleines 
on the roof,
where I can tell at first sight 
what's rotten 
and what's pure,
where we will dance 
to the singsong scream 
of evil burnt,
because the witch is dead 
she's dead
she's dead,
and the fear is gone,
and we can live 
inside our courage 
hand in hand.

Now tell me
what makes you happy -
Saturday mornings,
the laugh in her eyes 
when my joke is too stupid,
sour candy,
every single day 
of June,
letting the past go,
and knowing that nothing -
nothing -
will ever break again 
my sugarcoated heart.




© Copyright I.B. 2017

[The prompt was “rainbow candy” I’m not sure how it turned into this. Writing on the floor of my bedroom is always a cathartic experience but maybe the monsters under the bed are too close.]