Brian’sPoems

Bite Your Tongue

...unless you have something nice to say.

There is no burning desire
guiding my pen this morning.
Maybe it’s because the air in here
is too stuffy and would improve
if only I’d open a window.

Ah, now that’s better.
Here comes a cool breeze
to remind me of what my dad
would tell his bickering children:
If you’ve got nothing nice to say,
say nothing at all.

And so I gently guide my mind
away from those harsh words
always on the tip of my tongue
and toward a softer language.

I now realize time is too valuable
and life much too precious, to cling
tightly to one or two emotions.
I try to expand my heart
through the effort of falling in love
with this strange and confusing world.