I sit in the garden, admiring the flowers,
sniffing my favorites as I would any day--

there's no shame in going it alone. 
Nature doesn't judge, and with a companion

I might not notice just how crisp the air
is today, mingling on the tip of my tongue

as I sign in contentment. The book in my hand
tells a story of love, another story I cannot

relate to, nothing to compare it with. 
Yes, many say life imitates art, but here

I sit and I read and I'm alone and I'm more
than okay with that.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! Happy Valentine’s Day to you all 🙂 I wrote this to show that if you’re alone today and feeling sad about it, you’re not actually alone, but you should take the time to enjoy yourself. It’s somewhat cliché, but you can definitely be your own valentine. Embrace it– you won’t be alone forever, unless you want to be! Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

When the clouds roll in
and the grey skies envelop
the day, we run for cover.
I look up, embrace the water
falling at my feet, the fabric
of my clothes, my hair--
who cares about getting
drenched when it happens
so rarely? They don't want
the rain to fall on them, 
the droplets getting heavier
as more and more pool
on every surface. 
But from the clouds, 
for a time, each drop
is flying, airborne until 
the ground nears. Maybe
we are the unpleasant force
ourselves.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It was inspired by the rainy days we’ve been having here in southern California. As I’m writing this, it is a beautifully grey day and the rain has just started to dry up. I can’t believe January already came and went– I hope all of your winters have been lovely and rain-filled (if you like the rain as much as I do, that is). Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there!

Brooke

Sun just came up, I'm driving
on the freeway catching glimpses

of buildings I haven't seen
in so long, waiting to pull into

that same parking lot, music
from five years ago blaring out

of the stereo. I'd like to think
I've changed a lot, but perhaps

it's time to accept what remains.
Waiting to run into someone, to

experience something new
in a place so familiar, there's

no real reason to be out and about.
The light shines through my dirty

windows, stale raindrop marks
blur my view and I remember

winter is already gone.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It’s crazy how fast time is going by– before we know it, spring break will be upon us (or so I hope). I’m back at school now and there’s definitely a shift in energy overall. I hope you all are having a good 2021 so far. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Waiting for the light to wash away
the winter, the sun kisses us but doesn't

warm. Shadows remind us it's still
cold. Birds chirp threads that follow us

as we walk, tied to our wrists. 
We keep walking, waiting for heat

to come, expecting it to walk up
to us and say hello because we're ready

to move on. Time to fly away into 
a cloudless sky, far from here

and the sun can finally grace our limbs.

I hope you enjoyed this short piece! It’s mainly inspired by being ready to move on from this chapter of life and make the most of the new year. I actually want the “cold” (it’s definitely not that cold here in California) to stay, but I am ready for the seasons to change and new opportunities to come to light. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

The slight chill of the last of winter here
bites at our chins in the morning, but

the sun always shines through and the skies
are cloudless even now. Walks in the park

flush our faces just enough, and warmth
rushes through our veins when we go back

inside. Remember the feeling of cold: it is
fleeting and soon the heat will envelop you

day after day, like it does every year. 

I hope you enjoyed this short piece! It sums up how I feel about the changing of seasons– although it’s definitely still winter, it’s already starting to feel a bit sunnier and warmer (not that it was ever very cold or gloomy) where I live. I’m in slight mourning of the fact we’ve only had one rainy day so far. Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

The moon is full and high, its yellowed
light bringing out the shadows in your face.

A new cycle will begin, but we wade deeper
into the woods and wait for nothing-- anything--

something to approach. The darkness 
is comforting, only because we know

more light is coming, will stream through 
the trees and highlight our hair, nature's

knowing smirk like a flashlight upon our
own tired smiles. The sun is rising, just not

here yet. Something is coming, hope is coming,
so we lie in wait.

I hope you enjoyed this piece! It was mainly inspired by the new year beginning, and the shift in energy that always comes with that. Let’s devote ourselves to making 2021 a good one, and making our dreams come true! (I promise I’m not normally this cheesy.) Please feel free to leave feedback or writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

We are dreaming of bullet points
on a piece of paper, waiting for

the words to spring to life. Ink
streaming down the page, there

are only so many places we
can think of going off to, coming

and going. What does one year, 
two years from now hold for us?

Let's pick up our pens and keep
writing, imagining until we have

thought of all there is to think.
You know I am a sucker for

information and knowing all 
there is to know, especially if

we can draw a map of places we'll
visit, flee, and come back to again

and again. 

I hope you enjoyed this piece! I can’t believe we’re about to say goodbye to 2020– this piece is fitting, as we’re about to find out what the next year holds for us. Please feel free to leave feedback or writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke

Hello everyone!

How is it already this time of year?! Happy holidays to all! I hope you are having a lovely December. You may remember my post from a few months back about a new literary magazine I’m a part of called Intersections Mag. We released our first issue almost a month ago and would love for you to check it out!

If you’re interested, you can find Issue 1 here and browse our website as you please.

Since I’m currently on winter break, you will hopefully be seeing some bonus content soon. I apologize for not posting a new poem today, but you can check out some amazing writing in the first issue of Intersections! Please let me know what you think in the comments.

You can also keep up with Intersections by subscribing to our email list on the website and following us on Instagram @intersectionslitmag. Thank you so much for your support! Stay safe and healthy.

Brooke

I often wonder if one day
the walls between me and the world--

the walls between us all, the walls 
we have built-- will come down.

Maybe it is more like a maze, 
a labyrinth even, as every time

we round the corner or think
we've found a seam to chip away at,

there are only more walls. Who
are the real architects? They say 

we will build what inspires us,
but I only see blocks of cold mysteries

hiding what could be. 

I hope you enjoyed this piece! I think it has a lot of different symbolic meanings– beyond the obvious comparison of walls between people/ideas, it also has a lot of significance to me regarding mental health. Every time you think you’re out of the woods and have untangled your internal messes, a new struggle will pop up. It’s taken me a while to realize that’s normal (and okay)! Please feel free to leave feedback and writing challenges in the comments. Stay safe and healthy out there.

Brooke