So Much For the Taking

A Poem

Photo by Ahtziri Lagarde on Unsplash

take me captive
just like all the other girls
who had the misery
of being loved by you

take my hands
and find their maps
to show us where to go
and where we should end up

take my heart
and treat it right —
oh, please —
or I’ll go find someone else

take this day
and wait until nightfall
to run through our secrets
that we’ve stockpiled in droves

take the truth
and give it some breath
because all the liars live here
and want to choke it out

take me again
and again and again
to the places you knew so well
that are just strangers to you now

take this offering
of my time and energy
that can’t be reclaimed
for other means and purposes