this heart was like a ruin

left neglected in some 

forgotten-with-the-sands-of-time

desertification 

memories buried beneath

the weight of cairns 

of stones made heavy 

with regret and stasis

when all that grew here 

was strip mined down

to soil that lost its strength 

for sustenance 

and receiving light

and then came 

the craved for 

unexpected rains

that filled the empty places

to oasis pools of clarification 

and even through the storms

electric and volatile

and dangerous with fire

the seeds began to reawaken

and this graveyard 

in this barren and forsaken land

turned to a garden

that wanted to grow up wild

from the once dry mouth

of mausoleum

as butterflies 

releasing memories 

from their stone sarcophagi 

to pollinate new dreams

down through the pale deep roots

to hold this space

for fragrances of love to dance

and birds to sing the songs 

that cried once for understanding

vulnerable fruits begging

to be tasted and to nourish

and then all my heart

became desire

to offer safety in invitation

for you to stay here 

when you have need

in arms of grown soft

to sprawling

in the way the branches thrive

for you to always reach

that no distance ever

be too far