Untangling the Bones

Fear has overtaken reason
As I glimpse what has become
Tangled and tied to the net
I didn’t even remember putting out

The face is not what I had imagined
But something is intriguing
A familiarity, like I have known before
The electricity I suddenly feel

There are bones scattered in the net
But there is a purity
An honest beauty in them
Which longs to be wisely touched

The bones cry out to be loved in spite
Of the outward appearance
Bones cast off by others
Who couldn’t see their worth

The value in quick wit and honesty
In raw emotion shared
Willingly, without pretense
The value of vulnerability, bareness of bone

But the hidden treasure lies
In the secret of touching tenderly
The bones, not asking
For anything in return

In ordering what was thrown away
Caressing what seems unlovable
Kissing the crevices
Of darkness, transforming beauty

And when the tear escapes
It flows and feeds the hungry bones
With the nourishment of compassion
With the milk of a heart given freely

And the miracle that occurs
Is the life returning
The rose-kissed glow of skin
Flesh, alight with fire, tingling

Breath, where once there was silence
Air filling lungs that
Scarcely dared breath before
Inhale sanctified belonging

Passion, love, alliance
Ensue as an unexpected gift
From what seemed like only bones
To the eyes of the unbeliever