Inhale/Exhale

[Lawrence]

Hello everyone! This is my first poem on here, and I can't wait to speak to you all.



This is inhalation.
Think of a red balloon expanding,
A graceful leap off of the diving board,
That moment before you interject at a meeting,
Or gathering air you use to throw a shout across the street.

Suspense thrives here.
We’re trying to contain fear.
The murderer is still hidden,
Knife in hand, behind the door,
And our heroine is not at all aware.
The magician hasn’t pulled his rabbit,
I’m about to blow out my birthday candles,
A boy has picked a dandelion, wanting his wish.

The tide ebbs,
The day slowly withdraws,
You catch the scent of incense,
Lingering in an empty cathedral.
Here, you love her, so you pull her in.
While up ahead, you’re facing Mt Everest,
So you look forward, breathe in, and begin.

This is exhalation.

Here, you’re cooling off your scolding hot raviolis.
Someones just told a joke about two rabbis.
You whistle that song stuck in your head,
And you gently breathe on your glasses.
Now, someone is puffing smoke rings
On his windy porch in autumn.

The dark cinema erupts in horrified shouts
As the murderer emerges with a burst
And our heroin is taken by surprise.
You can here choirs singing,
The incantations of monks,
Men blowing on hands,
Trying to keep warm.

Ferocious waves crash on a bright beach in August.
St Peter’s is filled with chatty churchgoers.
And here, you love her, so you let her go.
The final sailboat has left the harbor,
The wind scatters fallen leaves,
You recline in your warm bed
And with a long, slow sigh,
Drift into sleep.