5 Days.

5 days.

That's how long it takes.

And if you are persistent -

You will bathe in rose water,

Rinse your mouth three times daily with peppermint from the garden,

Bite your tongue and speak no destruction.

Wear your skirt long,

Hang your head low,

Tuck your insecurities.

Pray on your knees,

Stand tall but not too much so you do not overshadow them.

Do not feel.

Your emotions are not reality and they will cost you everything.

Stick to the script,

Make sure to say I love you while they drain you and push you away.

Sage and smudge your lips with oil so that they may be ready to serve.

Always be ready to serve.

In private you may bite the inside of your lip and let it bleed,

You may shed three tears,

Making sure to wipe them before they stain the pillow.

Stains are hard to get out.

Walk in light and in line,

There is no repenting in this process.

For five days you must engulf yourself in being nothing more but a vessel for someone else's home.

You must forget your name and with your head to their shoe –

Beg and await a new one.

On day five you will reflect,

For if you've done it properly and dedicated yourself to loving you,

You are them and "they" are you.

You would have followed these rules

And felt what it was like to be loved by you.

You would have invested every ounce of your being back into yourself,

And loved yourself as passionately as you've loved others.

And if you're persistent –

You'll treat your love more sacred.

In the House that doesn't feel like Home.

It's raining now.

I'm watching the glass take blows from the whirlwind of a storm

It's cliché to think of just how in tune my mood is.

I was counting on emotionally seeking shelter from the one inside of me

In your arms.

The bridge burned before I could make it to safety.

Do all bridges look the same?

I try and stray from stories I've already told,

But heartbreak is repetitive and heartache can only be portrayed in so many ways.

And their clichés,

Remind me of smooth vinyl records,

With the slightest of marks on them,